Schools are teaching the next generation and this makes them an ideal environment to incorporate sustainable living strategies. Children can both learn about sustainability and see it in action if many of the available projects are implemented. The good thing with implementing eco-friendly initiatives in schools is that they often represent a cost saving as well as helping the planet.
There are many excellent initiatives for sustainability in schools put forward by local, state and federal governments around the world. These include adding environmental and sustainability studies into the curriculum from an early age and making grants available to help individual schools put eco-friendly strategies in place.
Going green for schools can be as simple as starting up a school vegetable garden, recycling waste or installing water tanks. These activities can be taken further by making the vegetable garden a kitchen garden and including the preparation and cooking of healthy meals in the curriculum. Recycling the school’s waste can include establishing composting systems and worm farms to use as fertilizers for the garden. The water captured in water tanks can be safely used to water the gardens, showing that water usage for the gardens is a closed circuit.
When a school adopts a whole-school approach to working towards being a sustainable school, the students learn many life lessons that may have been missed in traditional education. They learn to take pride in their school because they have a hands-on approach to many of the tasks required to become sustainable. They learn to work in cooperation with their teachers and peers to create a better school environment; they learn to make decisions which are relevant to them; they learn that it is possible to make changes for the better.
Sustainability education and practice in schools covers a wide range of subject areas. The most obvious is science, especially in the study of living plants and animals and how they are inter-connected. However, sustainability can also be part of writing and spelling, geography, history, current affairs and much more. The practical application of learning suits the less-academic students, giving them a sense of achievement at school. The outdoor component provides a healthy outlet for students who struggle to sit inside a classroom for hours each day.
It has been shown that sustainable schools achieve improved learning outcomes for their students. This is thought to be caused by several factors, including:
- Children help to solve real-world problems that they are then given the opportunity to implement.
- They are engaged in the study of more authentic topic areas.
- They have a sense of ownership of the school which creates respect for their peers and teachers.
- School is a happier, more fulfilling place and so general behavior improves.
There are numerous initiatives that individual schools can take towards become more sustainable. Here is a list of some of the simplest initiatives that a school can implement to start the journey towards sustainability:
- Reorganize the collection of waste in the school to separate recyclables, compostables and reusables from garbage.
- Find ways to reduce the amount of paper used within the school.
- Conduct a power audit of the school and look for ways to reduce the school’s carbon footprint.
- Adjust thermostats on heaters and air conditioners 1 or 2 degrees to save power.
- Turn out lights after school hours that are not needed for security.
- Turn off appliances, computers etc at the wall to eliminate stand-by power usage.
- Start a school garden – a native garden to attract local wildlife; a flower garden to improve an unattractive area; a vegetable garden full of fresh, healthy food.
- Look for ways to reduce water consumption. Install rainwater tanks to reduce reliance on mains water supply.
Sustainability in schools is not difficult to implement. It just takes some determination and commitment on behalf of the school community to get the ball rolling and then the students themselves will keep the momentum going.
So, if you have children, are there programs like this in their school? Or as a parent, can you think ways of how you might be able to encourage this in your child’s school?
Miss T has written 582 articles on this blog. Hi, I am Miss T and I am the owner and head writer of PrairieEcoThrifter. Each and every day I am working to live a money savvy, healthy, and green life.While you're here, consider signing up for the RSS feed or email subscription . Both deliver the latest articles directly to you everyday. Have a Twitter , Facebook, Reddit, Stumble Upon, or Digg account? Then follow me for all of the latest posts or to send any comments or questions.
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A vegetable garden for schools is a good initiative.
Kids take to gardening naturally.
@101. They do don’t they. It is amazing how much they get out of it. I heard about this women named Alice Waters who was a trained chef who got the whole idea about edible education in schools. She has started numerous programs in different areas to help kids learn about cooking and where their food comes from. She is really inspiring.
Maybe purchase more paperback books instead of hardback?
@Aaron. You could or you could fund raise for e-readers for kids. This would be the ideal since no paper would be used.
I work at a pretty progressive university. The university had a group of seniors do a energy audit, to suggest more ways to improve our sustainability efforts. There was also a community garden that was started as well. It is amazing what can be accomplished with the right motivation. It is always nice to see tangible results as well.
@20′s finances. I am so jealous. Some schools in our city have started some community gardens but that is about as far as they have gone. We haven’t hit the level your school has yet. I guess all in due time. I ain’t the most patient though. lol
Excellent tips and very easy to get started! Switching off lights or even better installing those auto timers when no one’s around is a great tip!
@MoneyCone. Yes we have found these things to work quite well. We have auto timers at home which work great. There are even ones you can use that have a random setting so when you are holidays it turns lights on and off at random times as a security measure.
Children can write skits and plays about sustainable living and their parents can be invited to see a film made of these skits. Not only is this fun for the kids, but it helps them internalize the concepts. It’s also an outreach to the parents to encourage green practices at home.
@Maggie. Good idea. Are you a teacher by trade?! You right though, kids can have a positive influence on parents. In fact I am hoping this is what happens with the masses-kids come home and teach their parents how to be more environmentally responsible.