More than 40 schools, community groups and businesses are sharing $592,000 through Auckland Council’s Waste Minimisation and Innovation Fund.
Most of the funding is going to schools and community‑led projects, with over half of all grants worth $5,000 or less. These smaller grants help support simple, practical ideas that reduce waste in everyday settings like classrooms, homes and neighbourhoods.
The council also made the application process easier this year, which led to more schools applying and being funded.
Councillor Julie Fairey, Chair of the Community Committee, says local action is key to Auckland’s zero waste goal.
“Getting to zero waste requires change to systems, and these grants allow communities to test new ways to deal with waste at the local level.
Schools and local community groups are often well placed to support neighbourhood projects, creating new pathways for waste, allowing council to fund small-scale practical solutions that will help Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland achieve our goal of zero waste by 2040.”
Ten larger grants of between $20,000 and $50,000 are also supporting bigger projects, including work to reduce e‑waste, textile waste and construction waste.
Funded projects include school composting systems, better waste‑sorting in classrooms, e‑waste education programmes and support for families to reduce single‑use items.
The fund is paid for by the Government’s waste disposal levy, with successful applicants notified in March.