Chemline, Inc.

Published on 22 Apr 2016 Written by Rachel Gutter Posted in Center for Green Schools

The mission to put every child in a green school within this generation is one that drives the Center for Green Schools team and a dedicated network of tens of thousands of advocates around the globe to work hard on a daily basis. In many ways, Earth Day is just another day for all of us—as it should be. For the broader community, it’s a time of year when people take notice of the environment with renewed spirit and commitment. Six years ago on Earth Day, the U.S. Department of Education announced their plans to create a voluntary recognition award called ED–Green Ribbon Schools (ED–GRS).

The Center for Green Schools is working with support from The Rockefeller Foundation to host the first-ever Education Ministerial for Sustainability, a peer-to-peer convening for ministers of education to establish national green schools initiatives around the world based on common criteria. This October, they will gather at The Rockefeller Foundation’s Bellagio Center on Lake Como, Italy, to help the green schools movement take a giant leap forward. This will be the first time that education ministers from around the world will come together to discuss sustainability and green schools.

Already, the three pillars of a green school—minimizing environmental impact, improving occupant health and teaching effective environmental education—have been adopted by organizations in over 30 countries as their criteria for a green school. In the United States, this framework is the backbone of the transformative ED-GRS Award.

Over the last five years, ED-GRS has united the NGO community, provided a clear connection point for federal programs and initiatives relating to green schools and contributed to a massive outpouring of support for school sustainability

What’s most exciting about ED-GRS is not the award itself, but rather the inclusive definition the U.S. Department of Education utilizes for its criteria. We’ve seen how schools of all descriptions—rural, urban, wealthy and disadvantaged, from the United States to Kenya to Hong Kong to Canada—have embraced the three pillars as a means to improve the places where our children learn. Solidifying global measures for green schools through an outcome-based framework will enable investors to monetize consistent metrics of impact at scale, transforming school infrastructure, student health and the direction of global education.

Rachel Gutter

Senior Vice President, Knowledge U.S. Green Building Council

Member employees, USGBC staff

Published on 26 Apr 2016Written by Rochelle Davis and Jerry Adelmann Posted in Center for Green Schools

The 2016 Best of Green Schools Awards, presented at the Green Schools Conference and Expo, recognized the people, schools, campuses and organizations that create healthy, sustainable and efficient learning environments and inspiring educational experiences.

The Best of Green Schools Award for Collaboration is one of the most meaningful awards we could hope for Space to Grow to achieve, because collaboration has been such a powerful factor in its success. Space to Grow transforms Chicago schoolyards into green spaces that provide students and their families and neighbors with a place to play, learn, garden and enjoy being outside.

Space to Grow is made possible through a collaboration between the Healthy Schools Campaign and Openlands and with the financial support and expertise of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago, the Chicago Department of Water Management and Chicago Public Schools.

Since its launch in 2014, Space to Grow’s three public agency partners have committed $51 million to transform 34 Chicago schoolyards by 2019; so far, six have been built and are open to students and their communities, and many more are under way. Just as important, Space to Grow is beginning to redefine the way we think about the potential of the schoolyards in our city.

Each schoolyard is designed with several goals in mind, which reflect the diverse aims of the collaborators:

 Boosting physical activity and wellness. Schoolyards provide healthy, engaging places for students to be physically active before, during and after school.

Improving stormwater management and reducing neighborhood flooding. Special materials, surfaces and techniques—from rain gardens to permeable play surfaces—capture significant amounts of rain during the heaviest of storms.

 Supporting learning. Outdoor classrooms, native trees and plants, vegetable gardens and even the stormwater capture techniques support opportunities for learning and exploration.

Engaging communities with local schools. The schoolyard transformation process engages students, parents and community members in developing the design and later in celebrations, gardening and more. Plus, schoolyards are open to the public and provide a welcoming space for physical activity and connection with nature.

A report was released, based on the findings of the 2015 National Green Schoolyards Summit. This report documents the journeys and lessons of green schoolyard programs across the country, including Space to Grow.  We are confident that these schoolyards and the innovative partnerships and new ideas that are a hallmark of all these models will significantly benefit our children, communities and environment.

USGBC

Published on 13 Apr 2016Written by ANN WAHINYA Posted in Center for Green Schools

For the past three years, Global Communities’ Kenya office has supported better learning environments in support of the Global Coalition for the Center for Green Schools’ Green Apple Day of Service (GADOS). GADOS is a global movement promoting sustainable schools that practice, teach and support environmentally responsible choices. In October 2015, Global Communities supported three nonformal primary schools in Majengo, one of the oldest and most marginalized informal settlements in Kenya’s capital of Nairobi. Nearly three months later, the schools continue to harvest the benefits of the event.

 Fixing critical needs

Child Survival’s floors were potholed, making seating arrangements difficult, and there was only one functional toilet for its 260 students. At Undugu, which has 200 students, the classroom partitions were broken and walls were unpainted, making the rooms loud and dark.

Through Global Communities’ teamwork, Child Survival Primary School now has 12 functional toilets, which has helped improve female students’ confidence and reduce absenteeism. The floors in three lower primary classrooms were also leveled, promoting

better seating arrangements and hygiene.

At Undugu Community School, the team painted the classroom walls. The local government administrative unit for Majengo was inspired by the effort and joined in to paint the outer walls, toilets and an additional classroom. In addition, both Undugu and St. John’s schools received recycling bins, which are helping children learn to sort different types of waste.

 Celebrating teamwork

The event culminated in a ceremony at St. John’s, bringing together over 500 students, teachers, community volunteers, Global Communities staff, partner organizations and representatives from the Ministry of Education, as well as sub-county and local government.

Students, teachers and volunteers planted trees to provide more shade in the schoolyard and participated in demonstrations on waste management. Students and community youth groups also provided entertainment, which delivered messages on waste management and environmental safety..

GADOS 2015 proved that small initiatives have a huge impact. In making small but significant changes to the schools, Global Communities highlighted the challenges facing nonformal schools and their infrastructure needs.

ANN WAHINYA

Global Communities