An elementary school in southwestern China's Chongqing municipality is promoting the concept of a dustbin-free campus, encouraging students to instead hand-make reusable bags to collect their garbage.

These bags can be seen in the classrooms of Tongxin Elementary School, where environmentally-friendly reusable bags hang beside the desk of each student. The bags, all produced by the students and their parents, are made from worn-out clothes or other recycled materials. According to a teacher named Zhao Xiaoxia, garbage is also sorted by type after classes finish. Zhao told Chongqing Morning Post that students get involved in the initiative starting from their first semester of school.

Chen Xiang, director of moral education of Tongxin Elementary School, noted that the faculty reminds parents at the beginning of each semester that public areas of the campus are free from garbage receptacles, and every student should prepare a bag to collect his or her own trash.

"Though the penetration of the reusable bags is not 100 percent, most students have developed the good habit of collecting their garbage in the bags," said Qin Bo, principal of the elementary school.

The project has also been hailed by students' parents. The father of one student commented that his son has changed a lot since getting involved in the campaign. Not only does his son know more about saving resources and protecting the environment, the father stated, he is also more responsible in general and aware of health issues.