Cairns Rediscovery Centre

A Visitor Information Centre about the process and role of recycling.

Client: Cairns Regional Council / EnviroCom Australia ®
Category: Visitor Information Centre
Date: September 2020

Brandi Projects were asked to add to Cairns Regional Council’s Waste Education Program by delivering an educational visitor information centre catering to a diverse audience, including children.

The Cairns Rediscovery Centre is a place for waste education and community engagement for the region. The aim is to inspire the community toward a greater understanding of waste minimisation and the process and role of recycling. With a greater understanding of how community-level contributions can support a sustainable future for all, it is hoped that recycling and contamination rates continue to improve.

Cairns Regional Council recognises the integral part that waste education plays in today’s waste management. In order for waste systems to work, people need to understand them and be inspired to use them. The displays help young and old learn about recycling. The visitor information centre welcomes school and childcare centre tours. Therefore, it was particularly important for the VIC to appeal to young children.

“Schools & Early Learning Centres can play an important role in rethinking what we do with our waste by encouraging children to become instruments of change at kindy, school, at home and when they are out in the community,” Waste Education, Cairns Regional Council.

Working in conjunction with our repeat client, environmental consultancy firm EnviroCom ® our primary functions within this project included:

• Concept
• Detail Design
• Construction and Installation

About the Cairns Rediscovery Centre design and construction

Bringing concepts to life which incorporate children’s educational needs is always exciting for us. Levers, buttons, gadgets and other interactive elements help to engage the young learner.

For this project, we designed a children’s-size rubbish sorter conveyor, complete with levers, controls and miniature waste bins. This helps children understand the sorting process in an imaginative, ‘hands-on’ way.

Wall-mounted rubbish bins (complete with lids), help bring the sorting concept from the refuse centre to the home. The visitor can follow the coloured graphics lining the floor and ceiling from their bins at home to the recycling process at the plant.

Children ask lots of questions, but they can’t always read great passages of text. Information panels combine text, graphics and images to provide visual stimulation and assist with conceptual education at varying ages.

Features at a glance

• Sorter conveyor
• Interactive wheels on the panels
• Floor and ceiling graphics
• Hierarchy puzzle
• Rubbish bin magnet interactive

The project highlights our design skills from concept to printed graphics. In construction, you see our intricate cabinetry skills at work, as well as our ability to not only make componentry interesting for children but safe. Installing large-scale graphics on walls, floor and ceiling can be a challenge but was met well by our experienced team.