The Magic Of Recycling

YUSUF KEMALETTİN PERİN SCIENCE HIGH SCHOOL

There was a young boy named Toprak in Istanbul who loved reading comics. He would excitedly go to the bookstore to get the latest issues. He also loved reading short stories and writing poetry. His room was full of old comics and paper titles. Toprak's 3-year-old sister Defne was also interested in drawing on paper. The carpets, table and bookshelves were full of papers and notebooks.

One afternoon, Toprak's mother asked him to clean his room and get rid of everything he didn't need. Toprak started sorting through his old comics, books and school papers. He made a big pile to throw away the ones he had sorted. He started collecting the pile. When his neighbor saw Toprak going to work, he thought he needed help. So he stopped his car in front of Toprak's house.

DARICA GÖKŞEN MUSTAFA YÜCEL ANATOLIAN HIGH SCHOOL

"Hello Toprak! It looks like you need some help," Mr. Ozdemir called out.

‘’Hi Mr. Ozdemir! Yes, I need some help’’said Toprak. Toprak was thinking about what to do with all these books, and the fact that Mr. Ozdemir would help him made him happy.

‘’What are you planning to do with all these papers? I hope you don’t think about throwing them away, because they’re not just pieces of paper. They’re trees!’’ Mr. Ozdemir said.

‘’Yes,’’ replied Toprak, ‘’just old comics and homework.’’

Mr. Ozdemir smiled. "Did you know that paper can be recycled? Instead of throwing it in the trash,   "You can give new life to trash."  Mr. Ozdemir decided to tell a story about paper waste. He told him about a forest far away where hundreds of trees were cut down every day to make paper. He explained that each tree takes years to grow, but can be turned into waste in seconds.

"But we need paper for comics, books or notebooks," Toprak said. Mr. Ozdemir paused and agreed. "Yes, we need paper. But we also need to use it wisely."

RECYCLE

"Where can we recycle all this paper?" Toprak asked. Then Mr. Özdemir offered to take him to a nearby recycling center. Toprak happily accepted the offer. Toprak watched as mountains of old paper were collected, cleaned and turned into new white pages at the recycling center. He was very impressed with what he saw. It was like magic! He saw how old newspapers, comics and school papers could be turned into brand new books, notebooks and more. He thanked Mr. Özdemir for this wonderful trip and they returned home together. Toprak said that from now on he would make sure that paper waste was collected in appropriate places for recycling.

Mr. Özdemir was a teacher at Mevlana Primary School. He was thinking about his students who were like Toprak. His students loved art class, drawing colorful pictures, doing origami and writing stories. They used paper to do these things. Mr. Özdemir was happy to help a child become aware of recycling, but he realized that his own students did not have this awareness.

MEVLANA ANATOLIAN HIGH SCHOOL

MEVLANA ANATOLIAN HIGH SCHOOL

SELİM NEVZAT ŞAHİN ANATOLIAN HIGH SCHOOL GROUP1

Toprak and Mr. Ozdemir left the recycling center and decided to develop a strategy to educate more people about recycling. Toprak discovered that recycling is not only for paper, but also for plastic, glass, and metal. The next day, Toprak discussed starting a recycling club with his classmates at school. Mr. Ozdemir agreed to help them in a mentoring role. The club initially set up recycling bins throughout the school and organized an event to teach students the importance of recycling. A week later, the organization launched a recycling initiative. They asked local residents to bring their recyclables to the schoolyard. The campaign was a huge success, and they collected tons of waste. Every piece of waste was directed to the recycling facility to benefit the environment. Toprak realized the importance of recycling more and more each day. He also motivated his relatives and friends.

SELİM NEVZAT ŞAHİN ANATOLIAN HIGH SCHOOL GROUP1

Even her sister Defne started using paper more thoughtfully in her artwork. When Toprak shared her recycling experience with her family, they chose to support her and became part of the initiative. Eventually, the club organized a festival to promote environmental awareness. The festival included performances, workshops, and demonstrations on recycling. All participants discovered how simple and rewarding recycling can be. Mr. Özdemir admired Toprak’s leadership skills and encouraged her to get involved in larger environmental projects. Toprak began to envision a future where they could study environmental engineering and develop groundbreaking recycling initiatives. This narrative shows how Toprak and her friends took a modest step that led to significant change. Their initiative motivated many people to strive for a cleaner planet.

SELİM NEVZAT ŞAHİN ANATOLIAN HIGH SCHOOL GROUP2

  One day, the recycling club decided to visit a local factory where recycled materials were turned into new products. The factory manager welcomed them and showed them how paper was turned into new notebooks, plastic into bottles, and metal into useful tools. The students were amazed to see how things they once threw away could have a second life. After the visit, Toprak and her friends had a new idea. They wanted to create art from recycled materials. With the help of Mr. Özdemir, they collected old magazines, bottle caps, and cardboard from recycling bins. They worked together to make colorful posters, sculptures, and decorations for their school. They called it the "Recycled Art Project."

SELİM NEVZAT ŞAHİN ANATOLIAN HIGH SCHOOL GROUP2

 The art project was very popular. Teachers and students from other schools came to see his work. The club even held a competition where students could create their own art pieces from recycled materials. The best pieces were displayed in the hallways of the school, and everyone was proud of their work. Toprak felt happy and proud. He saw how small actions could create big change. He told his friends, “If we all work together, we can save our planet!” His friends agreed and promised to continue recycling and teach others about it.

SELİM NEVZAT ŞAHİN ANATOLIAN HIGH SCHOOL GROUP2

With the success of the art project, the club began thinking about their next big step. They wanted to plant trees on vacant lots around their school and neighborhood. Mr. Özdemir smiled and said, “I think you’re up for the challenge. Let’s do it!”

Toprak and her friends’ story spread to other schools and even the local newspaper. More and more people started recycling, and the community became a cleaner, greener place. Toprak realized that small actions like collecting paper or planting trees could inspire others to protect the Earth.

NICOLAE BALCESCU SECONDARY SCHOOL

The boy realized that planting trees would help the environment a lot. Every day thousands of trees are cut down to make paper and then we waste at least 30% of this paper. Involving people in planning is a huge step, it needs money and people's help. His colleagues and teachers come up with many ideas to raise money. The best idea was to organize a big event to raise money to buy and plant trees.

So, next month there was a running competition and all kinds of funny and silly games, aiming to make people and children aware of nature, trees and paper waste. In this way they managed to raise a lot of money and planted trees all around the city and around the school. People also planted trees in their own gardens. Trees mean life, everyone knew this after this great event.

NICOLAE BALCESCU SECONDARY SCHOOL

ÖZLÜCE ŞEHİT AYKUT YURTSEVER ANATOLIAN HIGH SCHOOL

Toprak and her friends’ efforts didn’t stop there. Inspired by their success, they began collaborating with local businesses and organizations to raise awareness about recycling and tree planting. They created educational materials and shared them in schools, parks, and community centers.

One day, a local news channel broadcast their work, and their story reached people all over town.

Volunteers began joining their cause, and soon other neighborhoods started their own recycling initiatives. Toprak’s dream of a greener, cleaner world was slowly coming true.

Toprak continued to lead the club by organizing new projects, such as setting up community compost bins and organizing waste reduction workshops. She dreamed of one day becoming an environmental engineer and finding innovative ways to protect the planet.

The small steps Toprak, Özdemir Bey, and their community took showed that even a single idea could turn into something big, like the trees they planted together. Their story became a symbol of hope, proving that with teamwork and determination, everyone can make a difference.

ÖZLÜCE ŞEHİT AYKUT YURTSEVER ANATOLIAN HIGH SCHOOL

BBS STADTHAGEN

Toprak went home after school. He felt happy that his new recycling club was successful. Many students helped collect the waste and the schoolyard looked much cleaner.

When he entered the living room, he saw his little sister Defne. She was drawing. But Toprak was shocked - there was a big pile of paper next to her! She drew only one small picture on each sheet and then threw it away.

“Defne, why do you use so much paper?” he asked.

“I love drawing,” he said. “But I always need a new sheet of paper for my ideas.”

Toprak thought for a moment. “You can use both sides of the paper,” he suggested. “Or you can use a sketchbook instead of loose pages.”

BBS STADTHAGEN

Defne looked at him. “But I like fresh paper.”

Toprak sighed. He wanted to explain why saving paper was important. Trees had to be cut down to make paper. And trees were important for clean air!

That night, he lay in bed and thought. How can I help my school and my family to use less paper? And how can we reduce waste in general?

The next day, he had an idea. First, he started collecting waste at home. He put paper, plastic, and food waste in separate bags. Then he went to school and told his friends about it.

Together, they decided to make a new project…