KITA21 Award for Kita Treudelberg: Little Environmental Heroes Take On Waste
Arianne VogtKITA21 Award for Kita Treudelberg: Little Environmental Heroes Take On Waste
The award at a glance: Our Kita Treudelberg in Lemsahl-Mellingstedt was awarded KITA21 status on 13 October 2026 – for the first time, and at Level 1. The award recognizes its project "Little Environmental Heroes Think Big: Less Waste, More Nature – Our Contribution to the Earth". The children explored materials, ran decomposition experiments, visited a recycling center and brought the waste mobile of the Stadtreinigung Hamburg to the Kita. Since then, a waste sorting system with picture symbols has helped everyone sort their waste throughout the building.
"Where does this actually go?" When a child asks this while throwing a yogurt cup into the trash, it's the start of a great discovery. At our Kita Treudelberg, exactly this kind of question and observation from the children kicked off an entire project. For it, the Kita has now been awarded KITA21 status.
A Special Day for Kita Treudelberg
On 13 October 2026, the new KITA21 Kitas were honored at the GLS Bank in Hamburg's city center. 26 Kitas from Hamburg applied this year, and 24 received the award – including three of our Kitas: Kita Treudelberg, as well as Kita Mühle and Kita Mühlenhof in Wandsbek. We present their projects in separate articles: the Energy Heroes of Kita Mühle and the Everyday Heroes of Kita Mühlenhof.
For Kita Treudelberg, this is the first KITA21 award – we are very proud of the team and the children. The Kita receives a certificate and a plaque. And because the children are the real environmental heroes, KITA21 also provides templates for medals and "Future Shaper ID cards" that can be handed out to the children.
What Is KITA21?
KITA21 is an initiative of the S.O.F. Save Our Future – Environmental Foundation. It recognizes Kitas that embed Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) in everyday life – children should understand connections and experience that their actions make a difference. The process is under the patronage of Carola Veit, President of the Hamburg Parliament.
The award is granted in several levels. For Level 1, a Kita must, among other things, carry out a project lasting at least four weeks, and at least one staff member must attend the KITA21 introductory training. The level is valid for one year, after which the Kita can apply again – including for a higher level.
What lies behind ESD and what it looks like in everyday Kita life is explained in our guide ESD in the Kita.
The Project: Little Environmental Heroes Think Big
The application grew out of the monthly focus themes we work with in all Stadtküken Kitas, which are closely linked to the KLIMAfuchs project of the S.O.F. Environmental Foundation. Kita Treudelberg took up various sustainability topics together with all the children and staff, and for the application it focused on waste prevention, recycling and waste separation.
The starting point was the children's questions and observations in everyday life. From there, they approached the topic of waste in very different ways:
- Exploring: The children took a close look at different materials and observed in decomposition experiments what happens to waste.
- Sorting: In sorting activities, they practiced what belongs where.
- On the road: Together they visited a recycling center.
- The highlight: The Stadtreinigung Hamburg came to the Kita as an educational partner with a waste mobile. The parents were there too.
[!FACT] The jury expressly praised the Kita for taking the children's questions and observations as a starting point. According to the jury report, thanks to this educational work, children and staff now treat their environment more mindfully – in the jury's view, a significant development in the spirit of Education for Sustainable Development.
What Remains: A Sorting System for the Whole Building
The project has led to new structures throughout the Kita. Most visible is the waste sorting system with pictograms: picture symbols on the bins show the children what goes where – even those who can't read yet. This creates new opportunities every day to ask questions and engage with waste.
Sorting and Reducing Waste: Ideas for Families in Hamburg
What works at Kita Treudelberg also works at home. With these ideas, children become little environmental heroes:
Waste Separation Explained for Children
Children love order when they understand it. According to the Verbraucherzentrale Hamburg, Hamburg has these bins:
| Bin | What goes in? |
|---|---|
| Blue bin | Paper and cardboard, for example newspapers, boxes, paper bags |
| Yellow bin / yellow bag | Plastic and metal packaging, for example films, cans, plastic bottles, milk and juice cartons |
| Green bin | Organic waste, for example fruit and vegetable scraps, leftover food, coffee filters |
| Gray bin | Residual waste, for example diapers, broken dishes |
| Glass container | Empty glass bottles and jars, separated by color |
Do it like Kita Treudelberg: stick a picture symbol on each bin at home – a newspaper for paper, an apple for organic waste, a can for the yellow bin. Your child can then sort on their own and will be proud when they get it right.
Avoiding Waste – Even Better Than Sorting
Sorting is good, but not creating waste in the first place is even better. These ideas are easy to try with children:
- Lunch box instead of packaging: Snacks in a lunch box instead of individual wrappers. ➔ Result: Less waste every day.
- Shopping detectives: While shopping, look together: is there a version without plastic? ➔ Result: Children discover alternatives for themselves.
- Decomposition experiment at home: Bury a banana peel and a piece of plastic in a flower pot and check after a few weeks. ➔ Result: Children see with their own eyes what breaks down and what doesn't.
- Repair and pass on: What's broken gets repaired first – what's no longer needed is passed on to others. ➔ Result: Things get a second life.
Kita Treudelberg: Surrounded by Green
Kita Treudelberg is housed in a former inn in Lemsahl-Mellingstedt, surrounded by dense forest and green spaces. About 120 children, from nursery age until they start school, are cared for here in six groups. The forest on the doorstep is a daily place of learning – just how valuable that is, our nature guide for parents shows.
Conclusion: Little Environmental Heroes, Big Questions
The KITA21 award recognizes how Kita Treudelberg turned children's questions into an entire project – with experiments, outings and a sorting system that stays. We warmly congratulate the team, the children and the families. If you're looking for a Kita where nature and sustainability are part of everyday life, get to know Kita Treudelberg and our other locations.
FAQ
What was Kita Treudelberg awarded KITA21 status for? For its project "Little Environmental Heroes Think Big: Less Waste, More Nature". The children explored waste prevention, recycling and waste separation – with material investigations, decomposition experiments, a visit to a recycling center and the waste mobile of the Stadtreinigung Hamburg. A new waste sorting system with pictograms anchors the topic in everyday life.
How do you explain waste separation to children? Best with pictures and hands-on activities: picture symbols on the bins, sorting together and small experiments show what goes where and why. What matters is that children get to take part themselves.
What does KITA21 Level 1 mean? Level 1 is the entry point to the KITA21 award: the Kita has begun implementing Education for Sustainable Development, has carried out a project lasting at least four weeks, and at least one staff member has attended the introductory training. The award is valid for one year.
Which other Stadtküken Kitas are KITA21? Besides Kita Treudelberg, our Kita Mühle and Kita Mühlenhof in Wandsbek were also awarded KITA21 status for the first time in October 2026.
👤 About the Author
Arianne Vogt writes in the Stadtküken guide about topics related to everyday Kita life, early childhood education and nature-based pedagogy. Her aim is to explain educational concepts to parents in a clear and practical way.
Sources
- KITA21: Wer wir sind
- KITA21: Die Auszeichnung
- KITA21: Die Kriterien
- Verbraucherzentrale Hamburg: Müll – hier trennen sich die Wege
- Jury decision of the S.O.F. Save Our Future – Environmental Foundation on the KITA21 2026 award (Kita Treudelberg, 25.09.2026)
