Kenyan children protect donkeys from plastic pollution
Donkey care clubs were formed by Brooke to teach Kenyan chidren about compassion for donkeys.
This World Environmental Health Day (26 September 2025), Kenyan children are helping protect donkeys from pollution, through an initiative run by Brooke.
Children at a Nairobi school are repurposing plastic bottles into stationery, ornaments, and an irrigation system to support water sustainability.
‘Donkey care clubs’ launched by Brooke teach Kenyan children how to look after donkeys, who are often a lifeline to earning an income for their families.
Without proper disposal, bottles often litter compounds, roadside markets, and even grazing fields. Donkeys - vital animals in Africa that fetch water and carry goods - sometimes swallow plastics, leading to painful conditions such as colic.
The open burning of plastics pollutes the air, silently endangering both people and animals.
Our learners are not just reusing, they are learning creativity, critical thinking, and collaboration to support donkeys and the people who depend on them.
Donkeys can swallow plastics, leading to painful conditions such as colic.
The Nairobi school, home to over 600 pupils, sits in a peri-urban community where bottled water and single-use plastics are part of daily life.
Through a partnership between Brooke in East Africa and Caritas Kitui, donkey care clubs were formed to nurture compassion for donkeys while promoting environmental care.
Alex, a donkey care club pupil, said: “I love turning trash into something beautiful. My parents now help me collect bottles at home and I use them to make beautiful wristbands.”
Another pupil added: “I’ve made a beautiful pencil holder for my study table at home. It reminds me to care for the environment every day.”
With support in the form of art supplies and tree seedlings, pupils began collecting, decorating and repurposing plastic bottles. They transformed them into flower vases, pencil holders, fences for flowerbeds and drip irrigation systems that now water more than 10 seedlings, an innovative solution in a county where every drop of water counts.
Nairobi school children are recycling plastic bottles and using them for water irrigation.
The impact goes beyond the school. With over 500 bottles reused, fewer plastics now end up in dumpsites and grazing fields, reducing risks to donkeys and farmed animals. The schoolyard has been visibly transformed into a cleaner, greener and more inspiring space.
Learn more about Brooke’s work to support the health of animals, people and the environment.