“Yet another rubbish campaign” by KesselsKramer makes it really hard to throw away trash

Remember those rubbish bins that looked like happy frogs, to entice children to have fun feeding it with their trash? Well, KesselsKramer has tried entirely the opposite approach with its campaign for Koning Willem I College in The Netherlands. Through a series of ludicrous rubbish bins, the Amsterdam-based agency has made it really difficult for students to discard their litter, challenging their competitive sides.

“The students seem to have some difficulties with throwing away their trash,” says agency co-founder Erik Kessels, “so we decided to make a campaign asking, ‘Throwing away your trash, how hard can it be?’”

One bin has a heavy weight on top of the lid, requiring several people to lift it. Another is inside a metal cage, and one is high up on a ladder. One bin has a basketball net over it, and another even spins on its base. The whole endeavour aims to make the responsible disposal of litter highly irresponsible.

The campaign also included posters and videos shown around school of students interacting with the bins, and the agency has invited students to make their own videos.

“I don’t know if it solved the problem,” says Erik, “but it definitely got people thinking about it.”