Students from around the world calculated their class mean and standard deviations for their footprints and posted them on our world map.
Do you see differences across the globe? If so, why do you think those differences exist?
Did you use the calculator to try to reduce your footprint down to the average from a citizen of another country? What changes would you have to make to lower your footprint in this way? Are you going to try and take some of these actions in your daily life?
Student Footprints >
Recycling Bins in Schools
In my school, it's hard to tell which recycling bins take which recyclable materials. Some only take plastic water bottles, and the rest of the recyclable material is thrown away in the regular trash. Even if there are multiple bins that take different contents, it's still difficult to tell where to put which materials. If the school were to post signs that give examples of the garbage that goes in each bin, then maybe some of the confusion would go away. This would result in more recyclable materials that could be reused.
This is a very good point. Some students might throw something away rather than recycle it because they might be unsure as to whether it is recyclable or not. If recycling bins had labels or signs that made it easier to tell if they were for paper, plastic, or glass, it would make recycling easier for students.
Coming from an environmentally friendly school I understand the importance of having recycling bins and knowing exactly what to put in them. At my school we have a landfill bin that's black, a recycling bin that's blue, and a compost bin that's green. The colors of each bin make it easier to identify what goes where. Furthermore, we have pictures taped onto the bins to provide an example of the product that belongs there. These additions have helped our school become more sustainable, and instilled the values of composting and recycling in the students.
I'm from the same school as Olivia, but another thing we do to make sure that trash is sorted into the correct bins is have a Green Gloves program. Students from our Sustainability club have a week where we stand in pairs at each trash station on campus during lunch and help people sort their trash correctly while also promoting anti-littering. Last year we tried to have a green gloves day once a month, but it ended up dissipating toward the end. Maybe we'll try to start it back up this year!
Hi, Mia. My name is Austin. Learning the problem is half the battle and you make a very good point. This unfortunately is a very common problem in many of the schools that I have attended in my life. I would definitely try to revive the Green Gloves program again this year, as Dana A states you have. What will you do to ensure that this program makes it through?