Conduct a “waste-free lunch” challenge in your school.

Involve the whole school in a competition measuring each class’s waste. The class with the least amount of waste can be announced at an assembly and win a prize.

Do double-sided photocopying and encourage staff to use one-sided paper for scrap paper notepads.

Use a travel mug, thermos and resealable containers when packing food.

Recycle more by making it easy, place well-labeled bins throughout the school including in lunchrooms, offices, classrooms, and school grounds/sport fields.

Turn off the lights, computers and other electrical equipment when not in use. Try leaving the lights off on bright, sunny days − it’s free energy and studies have shown that natural light can improve student test scores.

Plant trees, one tree can help reduce global warming by absorbing an estimated 669 kg of carbon dioxide over its lifetime. Trees offer protection from the sun and absorb toxic pollutants. Shade trees cool down buildings to lessen air-conditioning requirements and reduce heating costs.

Students can research a product’s lifecycle to discover the amount of natural resources needed to design, produce, deliver and dispose of commercial goods. Students can pick an item like a car, T-shirt, banana, running shoes, etc. and then consider 1) what kind of equipment is required to grow or extract the raw resources? 2) what kind of fuel is required to extract, process, manufacture and transport the resources? 3) how might some of these environmental impacts be avoided?

Register with one of many charities that accept cell phones, rechargeable batteries and ink cartridges. Such as, www.think-food.com and www.rbrc.org/call2recycle. Or recycle ink cartridges as a means to generate funds for your school. There are many companies promoted on the web willing to pay for used ink cartridges.

Teachers check out the Ecokids website for Games and Activities, pertaining to waste that are geared toward primary, junior and intermediate grades.

Students check out the Ecokids website for Homework Help pertaining to waste.