RecycleSmart is bringing Christmas cheers this year, in partnership with the Refugee & Asylum seeker Toy Drive.
Except if you are currently in an isolated yoga retreat, you might be well aware that Christmas is just around the corner. The decorations, the lights and the Christmas themed shop windows are ready for the festive season.
However, we know that this time of year is where the waste problem peaks as gifts pile up underneath the tree.
On the positive note, this year, we do feel that more and more organisations and influential social media accounts are making an effort to share easy tips and tricks for a more sustainable Christmas. We are even seeing Woolworths and Big W promoting a glitter free Christmas collection this year #saynotomicroplastics.
Some organisations are going a step further, by not only sharing and promoting ideas for an environmentally friendly holiday season, but also by reminding people about what the Christmas spirit is really about: community, sharing, family, joy, love.
Even better, by making it as easy to donate as it is to buy the latest trendy decoration on Instagram.
Between the 12th and the 18th of December, RecycleSmart is organising a second-hand Toy Drive. In the 16 councils participating in the program, residents can book a Power Pickup and donate second-hand toys in excellent condition.
These toys will be distributed to the 10,000 refugee & asylum seeker children living in Australia. For some of these children, these toys might even be the first ones they will get in their life.
“At RecycleSmart, we live by the idea that recycling should really be the last option. All year long, we collect clothes, accessories, toys in great condition that are then sold in charity shops. For Christmas, we wanted to find a way to be able to give toys directly to children in need. We were thrilled to come across the Refugee & Asylum seekers Toys Drive (RASTD). This organisation would normally only accept brand new toys, but thanks to our unique model where our drivers sort all the items on the spot, they were happy to trial a collection of second-hand toys with us. We can’t wait to be delivering these toys to the hard-working organisations supporting refugees & asylum seekers in Australia” said Giorgio Baracchi, CEO and co-founder of RecycleSmart.
The RASTD has a detailed knowledge of the immigration sector as they work collaboratively with community development partners to distribute toys out to all the refugee and asylum seeker children in Australia.
Not only will they bring joy, the toys that were once loved by other kids will be given a second life.
If you are lucky enough to live in one of the 16 council partners, and feel that the children in your life already have too many toys before Christmas, you still have time to book a Power Pickup between the 12th and the 18th of December and donate toys.