On November 23, Okayama University Environmental Club ECOLO was presented with an award at the sixth Okayama Collaborative Community Development Award for its annual “Recycle Market”, which has been held almost every year since 2001. The award ceremony is hosted by Okayama City to commend exemplary actions that contribute to solving social issues through collaboration. This year’s themes were Reduce Waste and Utilize Resources.

As part of its club activities, Environmental Club ECOLO holds a “Recycle Market” every year in March, encouraging graduates to donate their unwanted furniture and household goods that are then sold to incoming students and people in the local community at a low cost. In 2020, the market had to be postponed due to the spread of the coronavirus, ultimately being held online in September. Club members collected donations of over 300 items from approximately eighty graduates, then sixteen club members dedicated their time to carefully cleaning the various furniture pieces and household items to prepare them for sale so that buyers could make their purchases with peace of mind. The online sale was extremely successful, with most items selling out as soon as the market opened.

Upon receiving the award, 2020 club leader TANAKA Akane (fourth year, GDP; SDGs Ambassador) commented, “The online recycle market proved to be quite challenging due to a lack of manpower, but we divided the tasks among us and devised ways to operate efficiently. I am so delighted that the club’s activities thus far have been recognized.” Similarly, KOYAMA Takuya (fourth year, Faculty of Letters), who was in charge of planning and managing the online market said, “The present activities of ECOLO are based on the twenty years of accumulated experience of previous club members. Thanks to this award, not only have we been acknowledged for our activities to create a sustainable society, but our activities have also become more widely known. It would be great if our actions could inspire similar activities and events.”

Finally, 2021 club leader KUSHIDA Mitsutoshi (third year, Faculty of Environmental Science and Technology; SDGs Ambassador) added, “When applying for the Collaborative Community Development Award, I talked to graduates who had actually participated in the Recycle Market and those who belonged to ECOLO about ten years ago and I felt the significance of the history of the event. Receiving this award has created the momentum for the next recycle market. If the event cannot be held, even for a year, it makes it difficult for seniors to pass on their know-how to juniors, but I think that next year’s recycle market will be an opportunity for innovation and I look forward to organizing it!”

●Environmental Club ECOLO

●Recycle Market
The next recycle market is planned for March 26 and 27, 2022.