How do I make my school carbon neutral?

Nov 11, 2020

How do I make my school carbon neutral?

by Nov 11, 2020Community, Educators, Schools

make change happen

5 things that you can do to make your school carbon neutral, use its money well and keep it promises to students, parents and your community. Together, we can make real change happen.

Everyone in a school community can help their school become carbon neutral. It doesn’t matter if you are a student, parent, teacher or the principal you can make a real difference!

The best thing about going carbon neutral is that it helps your school achieve lots of goals at the same time. Not only will your school become green but it will also be saving money, become more efficient and, of course, be delivering on its promises to families. So, here we go, 5 things that you can do in a couple of minutes that will help your school go carbon neutral…

 

Students can:

  1. Get your Eco-club and Student Council to put the goal of becoming carbon neutral on the agenda of their meeting.
  2. Speak with a supportive teacher and get their help in raising the subject of carbon neutrality in meetings.
  3. Get a couple of friends together and go and speak with your Principal (Head of School) about the benefits of going carbon neutral.
  4. Encourage your parents to think about car sharing if they drive you to school in the morning. The average car produced two and half times the carbon dioxide as the average home!
  5. Get your parents to talk to a school Board Member about the importance of your school going carbon neutral. Tell them to visit our site!

Teachers should:

  1. Get a couple of colleagues together and go and speak with your Principal (or Head of School) about the benefits of going carbon neutral. Help them understand that it is possible to reduce carbon, save money and redistribute resources.
  2. Speak with the teachers who run the Eco Club and get them to get the team to look at your school’s carbon footprint.
  3. Speak with custodial team and ask them what you could do to be more environmentally friendly. Share these suggestions with others in your school.
  4. Informally speak with any friendly parents at your school and encourage them to raise the issue of carbon neutrality with the PTO/PTA.
  5. Look how you can make teacher travel to and from school as carbon neutral as possible. Ideas include car sharing, asking the school provide transport, using public transport…

Parents can:

  1. Visit the Principal and ask if they had considered the benefits of the school becoming carbon neutral. We have an information sheet that you could share if you wanted to.
  2. Speak with Board Members and make them aware of the opportunity that becoming accredited as a carbon neutral school offers. Ask them to make it a strategic goal for the school.
  3. Get others to do the same thing!
  4. Put the issue of carbon neutrality on the agenda of your PTO. Get them to raise it as a matter of urgency with the school’s leadership team.
  5. Encourage parents to understand how bad it is for the environment for one parent to drive one car with one child to drop students off in the morning.

Principals, Heads, Board Members & Business Managers can:

  1. Get in touch with us! We’re a mission driven organization specializing in supporting schools like yours in keeping it promises to students and doing so in a financially prudent manner. Do it now!

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