Consumerism has made us desensitised to the issues faced by animals. More polar bear stuffed animals line the storefront then the number of polar bears left in the wild. Moreover, organizations such as the World Wildlife Fund that are meant to protect animals use these exact stuffed animals to receive donations. 

These contradictory observations are what led me to my design aim: I wanted children to learn more about human's impact on animals and the issues that arises from it. These issues are quite complicated for children hence I needed to find an appropriate approach to achieve my goal. 

Once an unwanted material, Pecu toys are given a new life by the stories that they hold. Every Pecu toy is unique, they are a patchwork of parts that makes them special.

With Pecu, our aim is to create meaningful stuffed animals through a unique storytelling experience. Each Pecu animal has its own QR code, simply scan the code to access the picture book. The picture book depicts in an unobtrusive way about the plight of animals.

Parents have the freedom to choose the degree in which they tell these stories to their child. The back stories reveal themselves through the subtle imperfections in the stuffed animal. A child will better relate to the story when they see the link between the intangible and the tangible toy. By choosing Pecu, not only does the child learn more about the real animals behind their stuffed animal, parents learn together with their child. They become more aware about the issues and have a greater potential to enact change.​

Pecu’s Proposed System

1. Collect unwanted stuffed animals

2. Sort stuffed toys by animal category

3. Sanitize the stuffed animals

4. Refurbish animals using waste material according to their Pecu story

5. Distribute completed animals in stores