Natu family wins Canberra Times ACT Container Deposit Scheme Envio Champion award

It's an incredible feat for the girls - Arushi is only eight and Avni just five - but with the support of their parents and neighbours, they've managed to make a difference.

The Natu family was recently named the winner of The Canberra Times ACT Container Deposit Scheme Envio Champion - Individual award.

And to top it all off, the selfless youngsters have decided to donate the $500 prizemoney to plant trees.

Arushi began collecting containers in 2021, when she was six, during the COVID lockdowns when her family would go for walks in the hour of outside time allowed.

She later approached workers on a building site in Coombs to collect their discarded cans and bottles.

And she delivered hand-written notes to her neighbours in Wright asking them to save their containers for her "project".

The neighbours were more than happy to oblige, leaving bags of the containers at the family's doorstep, often with their own note for the girls.

"Just saying, 'Well done'," Arushi said.

Arushi and Avni still look for containers on their rides around the neighbourhood, continuing to direct the money to charity.

"She's a good spotter," Arushi said, of her little sister.

"When we're on our bikes she'll say, 'Oh, there's a plastic!'."

The girls initially donated money towards a fundraiser organised by her father, Ambarish, to send medical equipment to India at the height of COVID.

They also donated to the construction of a new Hindu temple in Gungahlin.

They now hope to use the $500 prizemoney they received to plant trees at the National Arboretum Canberra.

"And we call it the Natu Forest, because that's our last name," Arushi said, with a cheeky grin.

Both sisters are students at the Canberra Girls Grammar School, Arushi in year three and Avni in kindy.

Mum Ashwini was proud of the girls and their desire to help others.

"They're getting aware of how the recycling is done, which is a good start for their age, to become aware of the environment," she said.

"Now, they know about the trees and the plants and how important they are as well."

In the other awards, Kingsford Smith School in Holt won The Canberra Times ACT CDS Enviro Champions - Schools Award, in recognition of the students' recycling efforts.

The school started collecting eligible bottles and cans on site since early 2021 to redeem though the ACT Container Deposit Scheme, with the refunds from the containers supporting extracurricular activities for the students.

"The students were really excited to hear they had won, especially when they found out that the $500 prizemoney will support them in getting to Adelaide for the national Kids In Space competition," teacher Timothy Kirsopp said.

Theodore Primary School P and C received the runners-up award. The school recycles containers through the scheme as a fundraising effort, overseen by a student-led Ministry of the Environment.