One Page Summary

A major requirement to achieve the 17 SDGs is awareness. Not just with governments, corporates and institutions, but with the people on the streets and the families at home. 

Kids are Key

sCoolMakers creates awareness around the SDGs and includes kids in both the dialogue and the actions to take. Kids aged 8-14 (our target group for the online platform) will be young professionals by 2030. The Dutch government has set the ambition to be fully circular by 2050, when the kids will have reached the age of 40-46: even further along in their careers, perhaps in decision making positions and with families of their own. What will be their view on the world? What choices will they make?

Through the sCoolMakers experience, kids and their families can become more aware and take action in relation to all SDGs and in particular:

• SDG 4: Quality Education with lifelong learning using real life situations
• SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities being more mindful of scarce resources: circularity tackles scarcity of resources, wastefulness and pollution. Densely populated cities and communities benefit directly. The sCoolMakers’ experience circles around real connections, fostering inclusiveness within communities.
• SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production: the main lessons learned with sCoolMakers making sure products and materials are used and reused again.
• SDG 13: Climate Action: circularity is not just about the materials’ flow. It’s also about clean energy, zero-waste and inclusiveness: principles kids learn during the sCoolMakers experience.
• SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals: our local stakeholder approach connects kids and families, schools and local clubs, circular entrepreneurs, local institutions and companies. Kids experience systems thinking and the importance of collaboration.

Real life challenges
We life in the age of mass and often mindless consumption with a linear take-make-use-dispose system. In developed, affluent societies, most kids have a lot of stuff. Kids grow and because of this outgrow their stuff quickly. A flow that ends up as waste if not managed with more thought. Some challenging user cases: 1) a short use-length may lead to demand of low quality single use products that are cheap. A big part of plastic toys for instance, unfortunately seems designed to be added to the waste stream. Tell kids and families the full story and the consequences of their choices. More information might lead to better decisions 2) good quality products end up in storage for years in busy households that never get around to clearing the items. Even though these might not end of as waste, it still is ‘such a waste’ to leave products unused for years. Make it fun for kids to clear out their rooms, upload their stuff and create impact with every trade they make!

Learning-by-doing
Like confucius said: “I hear and I forget, I see and I remember, I do and I understand”. Our learning-by-doing approach: play, create, share and change, gives kids responsibility, which leads to empowerment. With sCoolMakers they are introduced in a playful, creative and entrepreneurial way to the principles of a circular economy and social responsibility.

Warenhuisje: online and offline
Marketplaces trading second hand kids’ stuff are not new. sCoolMakers’ approach however is quite different, which makes it one of a kind. We have a first working prototype. sCoolMakers for the Netherlands = Warenhuisje.nl. Now everyday can be King’s Day!

sCoolMakers/Warenhuisje is:

• a purpose-driven social enterprise and set up to eventually benefit the Stars Are Circular Foundation
• the first kids’ marketplace to exchange used stuff, transforming second hand trade from a solely logistical and money-saving trading platform, into an innovative learning experience. Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Repair, Recycle.
• A holistic experience: not just online, but with a focus on offline connection of equal importance.
  takes a local stakeholder approach, co-creating with families, schools, entrepreneurs and local institutions and companies while organising testing sessions, ‘trading-fairs’ and workshops.

Playbook for growth
For now we focus on deepening the experience in Amsterdam. sCoolMakers grows one group, one neighbourhood and one city at a time. Both from a community and an organisational standpoint.

• Decentralised growth model: structured in a way to cater local communities, members only, keeping activities safer and more engaging on a local level, with bigger impact.
• Cooperative scaling model: collaboration with social entrepreneurs in each country where there is the opportunity to deploy, providing them with the tools and best practices to set up similar activities but tailored to their own local markets.

Exchange for change
The empowerment of kids and young adults will be a strong determinant of success in achieving the SDGs. With sCoolMakers more products and materials stay in the loop.
Help us build our product and community and continue co-creating, for a better future now.