At CEIP Mozart, a primary school in Madrid, we are championing sustainability through an innovative initiative: a T-shirt reuse flea market. This project aims to raise awareness about the environmental impact of clothing consumption within our school community.
A Successful Start
The first edition of our flea market took place on May 16, 2023, attracting around 30 participants. During this event, 56 T-shirts were exchanged, resulting in significant environmental savings—22 cubic meters of water (equivalent to a 4x5x1 meter pool) and 11 kilograms of CO2 (the amount a tree sequesters in one year). Building on this success, the second edition on March 15, 2024, saw similar participation levels and exchanged 57 T-shirts, saving 25 cubic meters of water and 16 kilograms of CO2 (the amount a tree sequesters in one and a half years).
Recognizing Our Efforts
The school community has selected the flea market as the key initiative to represent CEIP Mozart at the 6th General Assembly of the ECF4CLIM project in Bucharest, May 2024. This decision was based on several factors:
- The enthusiastic reception by the educational community.
- The effectiveness of the flea market in teaching about the environmental impacts of consumption and how individual actions can reduce our ecological footprint.
- Positive feedback from teachers, who have suggested integrating flea market-related knowledge into the curriculum.
- The proven success of the first two editions.
- Plans to institutionalize this event as an annual school activity.
Learning and Impact
The flea market has been instrumental in fostering knowledge and competence in sustainability among participants. Post-event evaluations and workshop discussions revealed that many attendees gained new insights into the environmental impacts of T-shirt manufacturing, particularly concerning water consumption and CO2 emissions. The event has effectively raised awareness about the importance of sustainability and the potential of small actions to make a significant difference.
A key takeaway for many participants has been the importance of the water cycle and the tangible impact of saving water through the flea market. Both children and adults have expressed a strong commitment to changing their clothing consumption habits, underscored by their signing of a Commitment Agreement to uphold these new behaviors.
Moving Forward
As we look ahead, CEIP Mozart is excited to continue this journey towards sustainability. By institutionalizing the flea market as an annual event, we aim to continually engage our school community in meaningful actions that contribute to a more sustainable future. Through this initiative, we are changing things by changing things, one T-shirt at a time.
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