The human caused changes in our planet’s climate are finally becoming recognized as the crisis of our time. Governments are committing to change, organizations are striving to reduce their ecological footprint and individuals are starting to take action.
Our school is striving to educate students about the issues and impacts of climate change while inspiring them to take positive actions toward helping the planet. We teach students about environmental sustainability, but the best way to inspire them is to give them opportunities to take their own actions. While we have been making strides over the past years by creating food and pollinator gardens, building an indoor honey bee habitat, and installing Mason bee and birdhouses, this year, we went further by starting a sustainability task force.
We invited and met with parents, students and community members to help us make an action plan by creating measurable goals and implementing actions. We also joined the EcoSchools organization which helps schools work toward environmental sustainability. The grade 9 class conducted a biodiversity audit and a waste audit and set some goals for the school to improve in both areas. Many of the students are excited about leading some campaigns and starting some actions with the other students to help improve the school’s ecological footprint. We also plan to install solar panels on the roof to reduce our energy consumption.
In the coming weeks, we will be hosting guest speakers to talk about their roles in helping the planet. We will then create opportunities for students to choose and implement an action that helps to improve our school’s carbon footprint. Next week, we will be hearing from Ryan Robertson who will be sharing stories about his time exploring the world’s oceans and raising awareness about ocean-borne plastics. We are excited about the momentum we are building and we look forward to seeing the results of our actions toward building a greener school.
Pam Matthews
Science Teacher and Outdoor Expeditions Coordinator