This site provides information for all school districts and schools who are considering greening their facilities. Resources are provided to help involve your students, staff, and community in helping implement earth friendly ideas. Visit us often for updates on what's happening around the country and links to the many agencies that are involved with implementing sustainable goals.
If you would like to contribute event information, have stories to share, articles of interest in the field of sustainability in school facilities, or any suggestions, please forward to Cheryl Honigsberg.
Opportunities and Announcements
Are you implementing sustainable practices for greening your school? Would you like more opportunities to improve your knowledge of sustainability practices and access to excellent greening resources? Are you interested in attending seminars, webinars, and training sessions to learn how to make your school more earth friendly? See below for our regularly updated announcements and opportunities from all over Colorado.
Third Webinar in New EPA IAQ Series
"Mold and Moisture: Double Trouble for Schools" is the third webinar in the new EPA Indoor Air Quality series! Scheduled for Thursday, February 12th, the webinar will take place 11:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. MST.
The EPA has developed indoor air quality guidelines concerned with energy savings and healthy staff and students. The guide is written primarily for school facilities managers, energy managers, risk managers, building operators, and school administrators to help them collaboratively manage the relationships between energy efficiency upgrade activities and infoor air quality in schools.
2015 Green Ribbon Schools Award
Every year the U.S. Department of Education uses the Green Ribbon School Awards as an outreach initiative to promote sustainable practices and resources in schools. The Awards recognize schools, school districts, and Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs) that have implemented best practices and resources to reduce impact and costs, improve health and wellness, and teach envionmental and sustainability education.
Stay tuned for more information regarding how to apply and mentoring programs for the U.S. Department of Education Green Ribbon Schools Award 2015. In the meantime, find out more about the award by visiting the U.S. Department of Education's Green Ribbon Schools Award FAQ page.
Simple Steps to Green Your School
Environmental Clubs, Classroom and More:
- #78 - Start or join an environmental club
- #79 - Participate in a green school challenge
- #80 - Organize a beach or park clean-up day
- #81 - Have a Green Team of student monitors in charge of recycling
- #82 - Set goals or competitions within classes, grades, or school wide e.g. least waste or most students walking to school, and award prizes
- #83 - Set up a fundraising program with proceeds going to a green fund to buy carbon offsets, a compost bin, a solar panel, etc
- #84 - Fundraising can include savings from recycling of cans, bottles, setting up a community collection center (for batteries, cell phones and/or printer cartridges), fairs, or bakesales
- #85 - Teach a green curriculum in classes
- #86 - Have a sustainability-themed science fair
- #87 - Take field trips to see how renewable energy works in action
- #88 - Calculate the cost impacts of sustainable building and operations (how much money does it cost vs. save?)
- #89 - Measure your saving results and brag about the school's accomplishments to spread awareness and recognition within the school and community
- #90 - Pursue LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Certification award to acknowledge your school as a green building
- #91 - Bring sustainability home to your family
- #92 - Bring sustainability into the community
- #93 - Participate in CEFPI School of Future Design competition (grades 5-8)
- #94 - Work with local GOODWILL on recycling and reuse of materials for class projects
View All 94 Ways to Green Your School Here
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Resources
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) - Healthy Schools Environment
- Indoor Air Quality Design Tools for Schools
- Indoor Air Quality Tools for Schools (EPA, March 2014)
- Indoor Air Quality for Schools Newletter (EPA, October 2013)
Additional Resources
U.S. Department of Education:
Green Ribbon Schools - The U.S. Department of Education Green Ribbon Schools (ED-GRS) recognition award honors schools and districts that are exemplary in reducing environmental impact and costs, improving the health and wellness of students and staff, and providing effective environmental and sustainability education, which incorporates STEM, civic skills and green career pathways.
The recognition award is part of a larger U.S. Department of Education (ED) effort to identify and disseminate knowledge about practices that are proven to result in improved student engagement, higher academic achievement and graduation rates, and workforce preparedness, as well as a government wide goal of increasing energy independence and economic security.
U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC)
The USGBC's mission is to transform the way buildings and communities are designed, built, and operated, enabling an environmentally and socially responsible, healthy, and prosperous environment that improves the quality of life.
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
The mission of the EPA is to protect human health and the environment. EPA's purpose is to ensure that:
- All Americans are protected from significant risks to human health and the environment where they live, learn and work
- National efforts to reduce environmental risk are based on the best available scientific information
- Federal laws protecting human health and the environment are enforced fairly and effectively
- Environmental protection is an integral consideration in U.S. policies concerning natural resources, human health, economic growth, energy, transportation, agriculture, industry, and international trade, and these factors are similarly considered in establishing environmental policy
- All parts of society - communities, individuals, businesses, and state, local and tribal governments - have access to accurate information sufficient to effectively participate in managing human health and environmental risks
- Environmental protection contributes to making our communities and ecosystems diverse, sustainable, and economically productive
- The United States plays a leadership role in working with other nations to protect the global environment
Integrated Pest Management (IPM)
The Colorado Coalition for School IPM helps maintain a safe and healthy environment for students and staff, and reduces exposure to potentially harmful chemicals. Colorado State University, Colorado Department of Education, Colorado Department of Agriculture, U. S. Environmental Protection Agency, Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, school districts, and private pest control applicators all contribute to this program. We support the goal of the IPM Institute of North America to provide a road map for making high-level IPM a reality in all of our nation‘s school systems by 2015.
Why IPM?
- Cost savings: The business case for Integrated Pest Management in schools: cutting costs and increasing benefits
- Health and safety: IPM in schools and homes go hand in hand with asthma management. Common triggers for asthma include mold, pet dander, and cockroach and pest allergens.
- Sustainability: Green building practices yield savings of about $70 per square foot in energy costs and improve student and staff performance. Incorporating IPM into schools is a natural fit contributing to lower costs and higher productivity.
- Did you know that you can earn LEED points just by adopting an IPM policy?
Colorado Alliance for Environmental Education (CAEE)
CAEE’s mission is to serve all sectors of the Colorado community by improving the collective effectiveness of environmental education.
Council of Educational Facility Planners International (CEFPI)
Established in 1921, CEFPI is a worldwide professional 501 (c)(3) non-profit association whose sole mission is improving the places in which children learn. CEFPI members, individuals, institutions, and corporations are actively involved in planning, designing, building, equipping, and maintaining schools and colleges. The association serves its members through three key strategic areas:
- Advocacy and education of the general public, including policymakers, on the efficacy of school design and student outcomes as well as resources for planning effective educational facilities
- Training and professional development of our members and others through current program, workshops, seminars, and conferences promoting best practices in creative school planning
- Research and dissemination of information regarding the linkage between the educational facility, its design, and student success
- CEFPI Membership Information
Colorado Wildlife Heritage Foundation (CWHF)
CWHF's mission is to ensure a wildlife legacy for Colorado through support of environmental stewardship, conservation of wildlife, and the protection of critical habitats.
Colorado State University Green Initiatives
Colorado State University is recognized globally for its green initiatives, clean energy research, and sustainability efforts.
Bugs of the Month:
This month’s topic is Earwigs
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