Garrison, New York should be very proud of the 30+ students who make up the Ecokids Club at Garrison Union Free School. They having been spending after school hours for the past two years coming up with ideas to educate their school and community on taking care of the environment.
They published the Green Book that offers a variety of ideas about how community members can make “greener” choices in their everyday lives. Proceeds from the sales have gone to sponsor a battery-recycling center for the school.
The Ecokids have implemented a school-wide recycling program. They held a recycling contest to inspire the entire school to get on board. The contest winners were honored in an assembly featuring the Ecokids and Captain Recycle, aka Pete Salmansohn, Audubon environmental educator.
As part of the recycling program, the kids have partnered with The Glynwood Center, a nearby sustainable farm, to help feed heritage breed pigs. They by collect and donate food scraps from the cafeteria every day. They personally delivered the slops one day and got to watch as the grateful pigs enjoyed the leftovers.
Like the Little Red Hen, the Ecokids planted organic baby lettuce. They planted and watered the seeds. Then harvested and washed the greens. They garnished them with Johnny Jump-up violas they had grown. Then they shared them with the entire school.
Using a $500 grant from GoGreen Initiative, the club purchased a movable solar teaching station which will be featured at this year’s science fair.
The big news for this year is the Just One Thing Initiative. Families are encouraged to choose one thing to change about their habits that could help the environment such as: using less plastic bags, purchasing more local, organic food, changing their light bulbs to compact fluorescent, and using less disposable products.
This spring the Ecokids will begin the process of creating a wildlife garden with grant money they have received from a foundation. The garden will give children throughout the school an experiential learning laboratory and a place to observe and interact with native plants, animals and insects.
You have to ask yourself, what hasn't this club done?? The sky is the limit. Way to go, Ecokids!