American Forest Foundation Blog

Nominate a School for a Chance to Win a Green Makeover

Mary Luevano is the Policy and Legislative Affairs Director for Global Green USA, based in Santa Monica, CA. She and the policy staff work to educate decision makers and champion model policies in the areas of green affordable housing, green schools, green municipal buildings, climate solutions for low-income communities and solar and other renewable energy technologies. Much of the work focuses on the needs of low-income communities and crafting policies that engage new constituencies in the fight against climate change.

Green schools provide great benefits to students and teachers – by protecting occupant health, providing a productive learning environment, connecting students to the natural world, increasing average daily attendance, reducing operating costs, improving teacher satisfaction and retention, and reducing overall impact to the environment. 

Global Green USA, an environmental non-profit organization, is currently hosting a Green School Makeover Competition with a $65,000 cash prize, plus approximately $65,000 of in-kind technical assistance, to help one winning school go green.

In the United States, we spend more on school energy bills than we do for textbooks and computers combined. Sadly, countless children attend school in classrooms with no daylight and stuffy, moldy air made worse by toxic cleaning supplies. 

Unfortunately, too many schools waste energy on out-dated, dirty boilers for heat and lights left on all day in classrooms with east/west facing windows covered with dense blinds rather than solar shades that allow for natural light.

Global Green USA has been partnering with organizations around the country to get the word out about the important health, educational, and economic benefits of green schools where students can learn in bright, healthy classrooms.  Green schools are designed, built, renovated or operated in a resource-efficient and ecological manner. 

Using proper ventilation and green, non-VOC building materials in designing green schools results in fewer sick days, increased teacher retention and better student attendance. Studies have shown that student test scores go up by 25 percent in classrooms with natural daylight and fresh air.  Once a school is “greened,” operating costs for energy and water can be reduced by as much as 40 percent and funds can be channeled back into retaining top quality teachers, textbooks, computers and other essentials. 

Green schools also offer great opportunities for children to learn in school gardens and outdoor spaces where they can explore solar energy, water, plant and soil cycles and more in a living environment providing a tangible, real connection between students and their natural environment.

While Global Green’s work focuses primarily on greening the built environment, our work goes hand-in-hand with the great work of some of our partners, like Project Learning Tree, whose GreenSchools! program provides environmental education, service learning, and leadership opportunities for students to help turn their school into a model green school.

Check out the official Competition website at http://tinyurl.com/greenschoolcontest and tell Global Green how you’d like to green your school. Be sure to enter before September 30, 2011!

Photo credit: Global Green USA