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A Lighter Affair
Think about the amount of garbage you create at lunch. Now multiply that by 567 students and 50 staff - how much garbage would that create - 20, 30, 40 kg? Lunch at Ferris has become a light(er) affair. In the last two years Ferris has been working to reduce the amount of garbage that it creates. Each classroom has a composting bucket, a recycling blue bin and a beverage container for recycling. To further reduce the waste for the 2009 - 2010 school year, the staff voted to modify the lunch schedule - switching to a reverse lunch. In the last two years the amount of garbage created has decreased by almost 75%. In October of 2007 the school was creating approximately 50 kg of garbage per lunch hour. This year Ferris is creating only 12-15 kg per lunch hour for the ENTIRE school!
According to Kevin Lyseng, students are eating their entire lunch, because they are HUNGRY! There has been 75 % reduction in the amount of food thrown out. Educating the school community has been the key to success.
As the year continues, Kevin will further challenge his community to reduce the amount of garbage going into the waste stream. Well done Ferris! Do you think you can challenge your school community?
Tait's Parking Lot Empty!
On the Wednesday, during the recent International Walk to School Week, Tait Elementary School's parking lot was empty all day!  Why - because every member of the school participated in an alternate/modified mode of transportation to get to school. Students and staff walked or rolled to school, which decreased the amount of congestion in front of the school and promoted active living. Individuals that needed to get right to the front of the school were encouraged to park and then walk in.
According to Sandy Haras, Vice-Principal of Tait Elementary School, the success rate has been approximately 90%. Students have been very keen. Teachers have been keeping track of the number of students who participate in walking or wheeling to school, and the class that has the BEST participation won the coveted Taits Top Walker Trophy (see picture). This earned students a free active gym period, something that all students love! Sandy says that they will continue this program again in the Spring and look forward to improving the walking and rolling rates.
BC Hydro Power Smart's Invent the Future is an idea contest. Ideas for conserving energy. Ideas for producing sustainable energy. Ideas for a sustainable product or even adopting a sustainable lifestyle change. Sounds easy? It is. Send a video or an essay that describes your idea and you could win one of four $2,500 grand prizes. Contest runs from September 8 - November 8, 2009 and is open to 13 to 17 year olds in our school district.
District Energy Conservation Campaign Results - Spring 2009
Following spring break last year, I encouraged staff and students to follow our district energy conservation guidelines to save energy in our schools and buildings. As a result of this I want to share the electricity savings results from 2009 compared to 2008 over the same period of time.
|
March |
April |
May |
TOTAL |
2009 |
1,734,227 |
1,579,679 |
1,676,700 |
4,992,615 |
2008 |
2,147,347 |
1,988,115 |
1,785,487 |
5,922,957 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
-413,120 |
-408,436 |
-108,787 |
-930,342 |
|
|
|
|
-15.7% |
The bottom line is that we saved almost 1 million kilowatt-hours or the equivalent of providing electricity for 200 iMacs for three months. Most of these savings were directly attributable to staff/student behaviour.
Where does our school district go from here?
Let's continue to be energy conscious in our schools and district buildings and follow the district energy conservation guidelines. In the weeks to come we will provide further resources and support. What can your school do?
- Make energy conservation part of regular routines (e.g. classroom monitor for lights)
- Get staff and students actively involved (discuss in staff and school meetings)
- Share information and successes through newsletters and your school website
- Promote on an on-going basis so it becomes second-nature for everyone
VANOC Video First Prize to McMath Students
VANOC invited B.C. youth between the ages of 13 to 24 years old to submit a 30 - 90 second video or animation showcasing innovative actions people can take to reduce their environmental footprint. First prize went to McMath Secondary students Darrick "D-Pain" Lee and Michael "Phat Mike" Darnel.
Our District Sustainability Centre
The Sustainability Centre is located at the main entrance to Steveston-London Secondary School. The purpose of the building is to provide a  meeting area for staff and students to discuss sustainability leadership and initiatives. In addition, the centre houses the office of the District Administrator for Energy and Sustainability. His role includes being a BC Hydro sponsored Power Smart Energy Manager. He works closely with BC Hydro to promote leadership, energy conservation measures and behavioural change
in the district.
The Richmond School District has been a leader in the introduction of energy conservation measures and in the development of student leadership programs that promote behavioural change for environmental sustainability. The Board of Education, believing that all staff and students have a significant impact upon environment now and in the future, encourages and supports the integration of Environmental Education into the curriculum.
ECO-WISE Web Tool
Our district has created a web tool allows schools to explore a variety of ways to promote awareness and behavioural change for environmental sustainability. School green teams can log into the data record area to record progress towards environmental sustainability in key focus areas, including Leadership and Teamwork, Energy Conservation, Waste Management and Green Initiatives. Schools can achieve bronze, silver, gold or even the highest green achievement level in each focus area. Click here for a PREVIEW
Carbon Neutral Action Reports: Education - K-12
Under the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Targets Act, all public sector organizations are required to report out annually, beginning in June of 2009, on their plans and actions taken to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
Wondering Where to Recycle a Material in Your Corner of BC?
The Recycling Council of British Columbia has an interactive website where you can find out where to recycle the following materials: appliances, batteries, beverage containers, electronics, flammable liquids, hazardous items, metal, oils, paint, paper, plastics and rubber. Click on the RCBC logo at the right to jump to the site
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