From Environmental Clubs to Community Impact: How ISEC Cameroon Is Advancing Zero Waste in Bamenda

At exactly 8:40 AM (25/02/2026), the school compound was already alive with curiosity.

Small hands clutched notebooks. A few students adjusted their uniforms with pride. The morning air in Bamenda felt fresh, but the questions we came with were heavier than the breeze:

What is clean air?

What does a healthy environment truly look like?

And what role can children play in protecting it?

This was not just another school visit.

This was another chapter in our Bamenda Zero Waste Initiative and Green Earth Initiative — two interconnected programs led by the ISEC Cameroon to build a generation of environmentally conscious leaders through practical action.

And this time, our destination was Self Reliant Nursery & Primary School, where we had previously established an Environmental Club.

But we did not come to talk.

We came to build.

The Vision Behind the Work

To understand that morning, you have to understand the story behind our initiatives.

🌍 The Bamenda Zero Waste Initiative (BAM-ZWI)

Launched in response to the growing waste management crisis in Bamenda, the Bamenda Zero Waste Initiative was designed to move communities — especially schools — from awareness to responsibility.

Bamenda, like many rapidly growing cities, faces increasing plastic pollution, poor waste segregation, and limited recycling infrastructure. We realized that sustainable change would not come from policies alone. It had to begin with behavior.

And behavior change begins with education.

Through BAM-ZWI, we work to:

• Promote waste reduction, reuse, and recycling

• Establish and support Environmental Clubs in schools

• Demonstrate practical, low-cost waste solutions

• Encourage civic responsibility among young people

Zero waste is not just about trash. It is about mindset.

🌱 The Green Earth Initiative

If Bamenda Zero Waste focuses on responsible waste management, the Green Earth Initiative focuses on restoration and environmental stewardship.

Through this initiative, we:

• Establish eco-clubs in schools

• Support school gardens

• Promote tree planting and urban greening

• Build leadership and climate awareness among students

Over the years, this initiative has reached thousands of students, planted trees, and created platforms where young people are not just learning about climate action — they are leading it.

Together, these two initiatives form a simple philosophy:

Reduce waste. Restore the earth. Raise leaders.

From Discussion to Demonstration

Back at Self Reliant Nursery & Primary School, the Environmental Club members gathered in a circle.

We started with dialogue.

The students spoke about smoke from burning waste. They described clogged gutters during heavy rains.They talked about plastic bottles scattered around their communities.

Then one young student said quietly:

“Clean air means we can breathe without fear.”

That moment reminded us why we do this work.

But conversations alone do not transform communities.

So we moved to the practical session.

Turning Waste into Opportunity

On one side of the school yard, used tires were stacked — once discarded, now repurposed.

We demonstrated how to:

• Fill old tires with soil and manure

• Prepare garden beds properly

• Plant vegetable seedlings carefully

• Water and nurture young plants responsibly

As students took turns planting, something shifted.

They were no longer passive listeners.They were environmental stewards.

They saw, with their own eyes, that a discarded tire could become a thriving vegetable garden.

They understood that waste is not always waste — sometimes it is a resource waiting for creativity.

At the same time, we demonstrated practical ways to reduce, reuse, and recycle plastic waste within the school environment. The message was clear:

♻️ Do not burn it.

♻️ Do not throw it carelessly.

♻️ Rethink it. Reuse it. Repurpose it.

The Pledge That Mattered

The highlight of the day was not the planting.

It was the pledge.

Standing together, the students committed:

🌿 To care for their plants

♻️ To recycle and reuse plastic bottles

🌍 To contribute actively to building a greener Bamenda

And they meant it.

Because when a child plants something with their own hands, they do not forget it.

When they water it daily, they develop ownership. When they watch it grow, they understand impact.

Why This Work Matters

Environmental education is often treated as an abstract concept — a chapter in a textbook, a topic for a seminar.

But in Bamenda, we are redefining it.

We believe:

🌱 There can be no sustainable future without environmental education.

♻️ There can be no effective waste management without civic responsibility.

🌍 There can be no meaningful climate action without young people leading the way.

The Bamenda Zero Waste Initiative and Green Earth Initiative are not short-term projects. They are long-term investments in mindset change.

One school at a time. One garden at a time. One child at a time.

Planting More Than Vegetables

As we left the school compound that morning, the tires were no longer waste.

They were gardens.

The students were no longer just learners.

They were leaders.

And we were reminded that real change does not begin in conference halls.

It begins in schoolyards.

It begins when a child decides that clean air matters.

It begins when waste becomes opportunity.

It begins when education moves from words to action.

If you believe in raising environmentally conscious leaders in Cameroon, we invite you to partner with ISEC Cameroon, support our initiatives, or volunteer with us.

Because we are not just planting vegetables.

We are planting responsibility.

We are planting leadership.

We are planting the future. 💚

E-Mail: cameroon@isecoalition.org