At Naenae Primary School, their journey towards being a Zero Waste kura has grown steadily through learning, relationships and student leadership — with the school’s Whānau Gala becoming a powerful moment where that mahi was shared with the whole community.
Over the past two years, tamariki and kaiako at Naenae Primary have been on a journey to rethink waste in their kura. Through the World of Waste tour, student-led inquiry and hands-on action, they began asking big questions: Where does our rubbish go? Why does it matter? And what can we do differently?
Naenae Primary students composting at Wesley Rātā Village
Those questions sparked real change.
Students have led initiatives to improve waste practices across the school, supported by kaiako and whānau who were ready to learn alongside them. To investigate the problem further, after the World of Waste, students conducted a whole school waste audit. Students can now confidently show you how to recycle, and a large, well-used composting system is now embedded at the kura. Composting learning has been deepened through a reciprocal relationship with Wesley Rātā Village.
Together, tamariki and community have explored what lives in compost, why healthy soil matters, and how care can flow both ways — with students also supporting Wesley Rātā Village by helping keep compost turned and active. These connections have strengthened understanding of kaitiakitanga as something lived and shared.
Students have also taken their learning beyond the school gates, presenting confidently at the Hutt City Waste Forum and sharing what they’ve learned about waste systems, responsibility and hope.
Naenae Primary Students Presenting at Waste Forum
To support whole-school involvement, Naenae Primary invited the Resource Recovery team to speak with staff about waste in Te Awa Kairangi, helping build shared understanding and consistency across the kura.
Bringing the learning to life at the Whānau Gala
Bins set up for Whānau Gala
When it came time for the Whānau Gala, students were clear: this was an opportunity to put their learning into action and bring their community with them.
The previous year, the school grounds had been left covered in rubbish by the end of the night. This time, tamariki helped design a clear, well-supported zero waste system, with compost, recycling and landfill bins placed across the site and student volunteers ready to help.
On the night, the difference was immediate.
“Here at Naenae Primary we’ve been crying with happiness about how good the bins look – this is Naenae!” – Teacher
Tamariki took pride in guiding their whānau, explaining where things went and why it mattered.
“I just picked up a rubbish! Just one! I can count them!” – Student
“I’m having fun!” – Student
“I’m good at this!” – Student
Parents and caregivers noticed too.
“I can’t believe the difference with the rubbish this year.” – Parent
“Thanks for helping me sort my rubbish, this is awesome!” – Parent
“Last year the rubbish was hectic, this year it makes me feel better about what we’re doing.” – Parent
The caretaker summed it up simply:
“Last year I needed to carry a bag around to pick up all the rubbish on the ground. This year there’s almost none.”
Over the loudspeaker, the message was clear and values-based:
“This is our marae, this is our pā harakeke and it is our responsibility to make sure we’re putting things into the right bins.”
Student compost being sold at the gala
Results that reflect deeper change
With support from Fill Good, Nonstop Solutions, and Hutt City Council, the Whānau Gala diverted 75% of its waste from landfill, while 430 single-use items were avoided altogether by using reusables.
But the numbers only tell part of the story.
What really stood out was the confidence of tamariki, the willingness of whānau to learn from their children, and the sense of collective pride in doing things differently.
“Every time my kid comes home so excited about eco warriors and gardening – she’s so in her element. Thanks for everything you guys do.” – Parent
After the event, the lead teacher reflected:
“Wow! Thank you so much. This is amazing! What a difference to last year. We are so grateful for your support to making this happen.” – Lead Teacher
What’s next?
Like all meaningful change, this journey is ongoing. The next step is supporting areas that weren’t yet ready for reusables to move toward compostable packaging, continuing to reduce landfill waste at future events.
Naenae Primary’s Whānau Gala shows what’s possible when learning is authentic, student-led and grounded in relationships. Tamariki shared a vision of care, responsibility and hope, and invited their whole community to be part of it.
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