Grades of Green is honored to mentor 20 Los Angeles schools competing in our 7th annual Trash Free Lunch Challenge! Each school participates by setting up a Grades of Green Team, and developing a waste reduction program consisting of Trash Free Lunches and Waste Sorting Stations. After conducting an eco-consultation at the beginning of the school year with their Grades of Green Advisor, each school received a customized report with recommendations for rolling out a sustainable, student led program. Each school then received a school-wide assembly to generate excitement around their waste reduction program and educate students on how to utilize their school’s new waste sorting station as well as pack trash free lunches.
All schools averaged a waste reduction rate of 67% on just their first day of kicking off the program! These rock star schools are collectively on track to divert a total of 4,950 pounds of waste from landfills every day. It’s now up to each school to continue educating their students, maintain their waste sorting stations, and improve their waste reduction rate. In March, a panel of environmental experts will decide which middle and elementary school will win the 2017-2018 Trash Free Lunch Challenge and take home a $1,000 grant to improve their environmental programs.
Thank you to our sponsors who helped make this year’s program possible: LA County Sanitation District, Lush, Northrop Grumman, LA County 3rd District, LA County 4th District, City of Santa Monica, Carton Council, Johnson Ohana Foundation, LA Kings Care Foundation
Interested in helping your school reduce its waste? Click here to register and check out Grades of Green’s Waste Activities! Want to take one of our Activities and turn it into a student powered movement? Click here to check out our latest Facebook Webinar on how to create a movement!