In Pietermaritzburg, Epworth Primary created Eppie the elephant, which was made from recycled goods and even parts of an old washing machine! The Ellie Challenge has big hopes to support a team dedicated to keeping Elephant City clean:
Pietermaritzburg, South Africa (13 May 2024) — Another school is putting on their creative caps and stepping up to do their part for the environment by turning a wireframe animal into a recycled masterpiece. In Durban, learners are using recycled materials to make Project Rhino a success, while in Pietermaritzburg, Epworth Primary have taken up the Keep Pietermaritzburg Clean Action Group‘s ‘Ellie Challenge’.
With a task to ‘Create an Ellie and Fill his Belly”, the ellie challenge doubles as a way for learners to jump on the eco-conscious train and a fundraiser for the KPCA Group—a dedicated team working hard to live up to their name by keeping Pietermaritzburg clean and green. The Group have had many success stories when it comes to beautifying down-trodden parts of the City, with Victoria Road being a current example of how an area can transform when a community takes action together.
Pietermaritzburg’s other name ‘Umgungundlovu’ means ‘the place of the big elephant’. And just like the City’s spirit animal, its citizens are “large and strong and can face our challenges in PMB head on,” as Lara Edmonds who presented the Group’s ‘Ellie Tale’ to the school shares.
Last year, Lara presented a herd of handmade elephants to City Hall as a soft reminder of the community’s collective power.
The school’s elephant—Eppie—has already been kitted out with recycled goods.
“Eppie the Ellie was made out of all recycled material by ground staff including parts of an old washing machine, His trunk was made from ducting from an old air-conditioning system. The Grade 5s then covered his frame in paper-mache before painting him,” says Epworth Head, Mrs Carlitz.
Now, the challenge is on to fill Eppie’s belly with items that generally end up taking space in landfills, like aluminium cans.
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KPCA shared that the school children will also post their cans down Ellie’s long trunk, while a special Epworth satchel has already been created to collect R20 notes (the notes that honour South Africa’s elephants).
You can keep up with the KPCA’s good, clean things, here.
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