Mermaids take a stand! Crowdfund launched to educate kids about climate change

As Great Big Green Week kicks off, Be The Future has launched a crowdfund to help it launch a new revolutionary climate change ‘EDUtainment’ kit aimed at young kids (age 4 to 7).

The company wants to raise £18,000 so it can release a new book, game, and activity pack with a big focus on hope, wit and playful action on the topic of climate change.

It comes after a reclaimed waste mermaid was “washed up” on the shore of Runswick Bay in Yorkshire to highlight the sheer amount of plastic waste in the sea.

Created by Helen Hill from Be The Future, the incredible costume took over 150 hours to create using hundreds of plastic bottles and other waste products such as an old broken tent, coffee pods and medicine blister packs.

The tail is four metres long, one metre wide and weighs six kilograms – you’d need 42 of these tails to mirror the amount of plastic that’s tipped into the sea every second – that’s the equivalent weight of five rhinos or three male orcas.

Helen has kicked off a UK tour for the stunning mermaid tail, including making an appearance during Helen’s TEDx Sustainable Manchester talk in October.

For Great Big Green Week itself, Be The Future is doing a series of book readings and online drawing workshops of the characters. There will be extra resources available for parents and schools to download on the website too. 

Be The Future co-founder Helen Hill said: “These EDUtainment kits really are a game-changer as they intend to turn feelings of “eco overwhelm” into playful action. Our independent survey earlier this year of 2,000 people showed over a third of parents (37%) would love to teach their kids more about climate change if they had the right tools or ideas. On top of this two in five parents (38%) said they’re not worried about sharing the realities of it with their children – even if it might scare them. So with this in mind, we think there’s a big demand for playful and fun activities parents and kids can do together to help spur action and change.”

This climate ‘EDUtainment’ is available to buy via Be The Future’s Kickstarter campaign on 13 June. To find out more, head to https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/244535889/edutainment-kit-turn-eco-overwhelm-into-playful-action