To celebrate National Recycling Week (8th – 14th November), Thiess Services in conjunction with Gosford City and Wyong Shire Councils, invited all residents from the Central Coast of New South Wales to enter a competition to design a creative, unique or humorous 30 second YouTube style video to encourage people to recycle.

The competition was won by university student Renee Smith of Bateau Bay, whose innovative video, entitled ‘The Great Escape’ is all about keeping recycling out of landfills. The video features an aluminium can puppet that escapes from a general waste bin and finds his way into a recycling bin, thus ensuring he will be disposed of correctly.

Thiess Services Education Officer, Michelle Murrell, said it was a tough choice for the judges to determine the winning entries.

“We received seven video entries from residents, all of them showing great creativity from our residents and providing some outstanding ideas that can be incorporated into the ‘1 Coast, 1 World, Don’t Waste It! Waste Education Program’,” Michelle said. 

“Renee’s entry touches on an important recycling message for Central Coast residents. Approximately 20 percent of what we currently put in our red lid (general waste) bins are things like bottles, cans, paper and cardboard which should be recycled in our yellow lid bins.

“We are encouraging residents to recycle all their paper, cardboard, aluminium drink cans, foil and & pie trays, steel food cans, aerosol spray cans, rigid plastic bottles and & containers and glass bottles and & jars in the yellow lid bin.”

The winning entry has been turned into a professional TV Commercial by sponsor Treehouse Creative and broadcast on NBN Central Coast during National Recycling Week. Renee won $1,500 for her creative efforts plus a 5000L water tank donated by SULO Australia.