EDUCATION
ECO- FRIENDLY EDUCATION : PLANET JUNKO
PETE ROPE , THE INVENTOR , FOUNDER AND CEO OF HEADCORN-BASED , ECO-FRIENDLY TOY COMPANY PLANET JUNKO HAS SPENT THE LAST TWO YEARS CHANGING THE WAY CHILDREN AND THEIR PARENTS THINK ABOUT PLAY TIME . THE EDUCATIONAL AND ENDLESSLY AMUSING JUNKO KITS GIVE KIDS THE OPPORTUNITY TO LET THEIR CREATIVE SIDE RUN WILD – ALL FROM THE RECYCLING IN THEIR VERY OWN HOMES . JESS MARSHALL FINDS OUT MORE ABOUT ALL THINGS JUNKO , SUSTAINABILITY AND THE FUTURE OF THE PLAY REVOLUTION .
Tell us a little about how the idea for Planet JUNKO came to you ?
JUNKO began when I was making a model car from a juice carton with my twin boys and we didn ’ t have anything to make working wheels with . I had a think and bought a 3D printer and started trying things out . JUNKO was invented to help kids think more creatively and learn how to use their home ’ s recycling to transform it into thousands of different toys .
What was the reception like when you first launched Planet JUNKO ?
We launched at Toy Fair Olympia in 2019 – which was pretty much full of plastic toys , packaged in plastic destined for landfill . But it did mean that we really stood out . Toys can ’ t just be sustainable , they have to be good or no child will want them . We ’ re primarily a fantastic creative kit and not only are our materials and process sustainable , our factory in Poland is family owned and treats their staff fairly .
What made you so passionate about sustainability and trying to reduce our carbon footprint ?
I ’ m a parent and feel a duty to not leave our kids with the earth in a right old mess . We manufacture from recycled plastic because we think it ’ s the least demanding on the world ’ s resources . We worry that using wood for everything will deplete the world ’ s forests , wood takes decades to grow ; using bioplastics uses crop land , and most do not even biodegrade in natural conditions – so they still have the same disposal problems as plastic made from oil .
Today ' s world revolves around the various screens in our lives , do you think Planet JUNKO has encouraged parents and children to spend more quality time together ?
Screen time is great fun , very useful and can be good for development , but balance is what most of us parents are trying for . JUNKO kits are a great way for parents and grandparents to pass on skills taken for granted ; drawing , measuring , planning . Lots of kids simply don ’ t develop these skills at all , so it ' s fun and liberating for a child to be empowered – thinking for themselves and being creative .
What do you hope Planet JUNKO will achieve in the next 5 years ?
We ’ d like to be a household name so that kids can be creative with their minds and hands and whilst thinking about the waste we all make and how we can reduce and reuse .
www . planetjunko . com planet _ junko
168