IB World request - your school and green issues
By IB Blogosphere • Sep 21st, 2009 • Category: FeaturesWe need great examples of things IB schools and students are doing to help the environment or to raise awareness of green issues.
From walking to school to saving the rainforests, it doesn’t matter how big or small your efforts are, we want to hear about them.
So if you have examples to share, either Tweet us on Twitter, post a comment on this blog or use our contact form
We look forward to hearing from you!
At the International School Brunei, we are privileged to be situated near primary rainforests and has taken the initiative of repairing the ‘world’s third lung’ through ISB’s Million Trees Projects. Students are given the opportunity to plant trees in local planting sites. Other than our reforestation efforts, annual beach clean-ups help raise awareness in the local community. Our school also publishes an annual ECO calendar to raise funds for the Million Trees Project, featuring images entered in the Photography Competition.
At the community level, teachers of the ECO group and parents of The Green Family and the Parent Teacher Association meet regularly to discuss and implement action plans that can reduce the school’s carbon footprint and conserve energy and water, as well as source out ECO alternatives for homes. The school’s extensive recycling program includes recycling PET bottles, aluminium and steel cans, plastic lunch containers, paper, battery and clothing.
At the student level, the Student Environment Council raises awareness and promotes student involvement through assemblies (such as the Earth Day Assembly), updating recycling bins and ECO news; and provides the opportunity for creative green alternatives, such as ‘Recycle Wear’. In an effort to support local communities, the Student Environment Council also organises fundraisers through bake sales, non-uniform days and recently, the annual Quiz Night. Day-to-day activities ensure that paper is reused before it is recycled, waste is reduced and electrical devices switched off when not in use. There are also many CAS activities that allow for student involvement, such as Reef Cleaning off the coast of Brunei and the annual Borneo Global Issues Conference, which is a carbon-neutral, student-led MUN styled conference with one committee actually dedicated to solving Environmental Issues. Recently, a student led ECO Action Team held its first meeting, discussing ideas for projects that will further the school’s green initiatives.
Hi, we have a Sustainability Strategy in progress called ‘Plan Verde’. We are focusing on three main areas: Campus, Community and Curriculum. Within Campus we have 10 ‘Doorways’ in operation - similar to the UK approach but adapted to our suit our local reality (in Lima, Peru). They are: Water, Energy, Waste, Recycling, Chemicals, Purchases, Transport, Green Areas, Green Architecture and Health & Safety. Students, Teachers, Admin., Maintenance and Dining room/Kiosk staff are all involved along with parents to develop a number of eco-projects as defined in a collaborative approach through school website blog. This year 5th Grade exhibition students are all creating their own sustainable projects for school and local community in groups of 3-4. Almost all PYP units of inquiry have some element of sustainability too.
Dear Pamela,
Your school’s approach to sustainability sounds very interesting and would love to hear more about it. What school are you workshing for in Lima?
Thanks,
Guy
Our school has a recycling program but the MYP has pushed environmental concerns up the agenda.
We now have a pilot project using solar, wind and human generated energy to power computers.
We developing a plan to become carbon neutral by staring off with making our Technology carbon neutral. We are calculating the amount of energy used and CO2 produced and will plant trees to off set this. The long term goal is to make the whole school carbon neutral.
My school is somewhat new, and it just became an IB school. We do not have an environmental responsibility plan, so I designed a unit around this. After reading, discussing, and reflecting about how we affect our environment and what we can do to make a different, my 6th graders are creating a plan of action for our school to finally start being environment friendly. The principal has agreed to come to my class and hear their proposals (they have to draft a formal plan of action and deliver an oral presentation — this is for Language B Spanish Advanced) and she has promised to take my students’ ideas into consideration. We are planning on presenting a school-wide environmental responsibility plan by the end of the semester. My students are so excited with their project and the possibility of making a change in their school!
– Patricia Zaldivar
Baton Rouge International School
It’s really good to hear that the voice of students is being heard in this way. I hope it makes a difference!
At Edron Academy in Mexico City we began a whole school obligatory transport system 3 years ago. This has dramtically reduced traffic around our site and has done just a little bit to reduce traffic in this traffic crazed city that is Mexico DF.
What a great idea.
Hiya, at our school (which gas both ib and a levels) the ib students set up a people and planet group. Today we held an assembly on world peace day and we organized our own flashmob to help raise awareness of climate change. We have sent off the pictures to avaaz. We recycle as a school and the long overdue new schoolbuilding will be superefficient.
Wow, it sounds like your school would be a perfect feature for IB World Iszy. Really good ideas.
Thanks. St johns, Marlborough does it’s best. =)
I suggest using DISQUS Comment system as it formulates and displays any tweets relating to this article to be displayed as a comment. Such example can be found here:
http://techxav.com/2009/09/17/evan-williams/
Cheers
Thanks Sean, will take a look!