By Amanda Sawit
Early in April, 1,000 attendees gathered in St. Paul, Minn., to celebrate the role of schools in fostering the next generation of sustainability leaders at the . The event, which is produced by the (USGBC), offered two days of educational sessions, case studies, hands-on workshops and lectures from today’s green school experts. For those that missed it, here are the top three highlights from the show:
听USGBC unveils new program for teaching STEM in K12 schools
The program is equipped with standards-aligned lessons about sustainability and a state-of-the-art online building management dashboard. It brings together a core team of school facilities personnel, educators and volunteer green building professionals to engage students in real-world energy, water, waste, transportation and environmental health investigations of their school.
Teachers, administrators and facility managers can . Schools can also 鈥渃laim鈥� their buildings to start using the digital dashboard for tracking sustainability performance.
The program builds on a that was conducted with a handful of schools and districts across the nation using the digital benchmarking tool . There are currently more than 110 schools using Arc to measure and teach school sustainability.
First student-led LEED v4.1 project in Minnesota achieves LEED Gold
Students and alumni of the in Apple Valley, Minnesota, celebrated the LEED certification of their school building with a plaque ceremony during the Opening Plenary. A cohort of 45 students led a multi-year effort, with the assistance of 25 local green building professionals. This is the first certified project to be driven by students in the state.
鈥淭he project overall has given a voice to students, inspiring advocacy and action,鈥� said , senior vice president at USGBC, during the ceremony. 鈥淭hey are truly a shining beacon of what鈥檚 possible when you let students take the lead.鈥�
Best of Green Schools, Green Apple Day of Service Award Winners Announced
For the second year in a row, winners of the 2019 Best of Green Schools and Green Apple Day of Service awards were recognized onstage during conference proceedings.
听The represent the best environmental efforts in schools across the country and highlight national leaders in school sustainability.听They are co-presented by USGBC鈥檚 Center for Green Schools and the .
鈥淭hese honorees truly embody the value of stewardship,鈥� said听, director, Center for Green Schools at USGBC in a release. 鈥淭he work they have done to advance environmental literacy and the quality of the spaces where learning takes place, is so impactful. Youth everywhere are inspiring what the future of our world should look like and we are committed to supporting them in that effort.鈥�
Best of Green Schools honorees include:
- Ambassador Award:听, Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (Madison, Wisconsin)
- Business Leader Award:听(Houston, Texas)
- Collaborator Award:听, Florida Atlantic University (West Palm Beach, Florida)
- Higher Education Institution Award:听(Lincoln, Nebraska)
- K12 School Award:听(Baltimore, Maryland)
- School System Award:听(South San Francisco, California)
- Student Leader Award:听Ella Culton,听(West Greenwich, Rhode Island)
- Transformation Award:听(Ithaca, New York)
- Policymaker Award:听, Albuquerque Public Schools (Albuquerque, New Mexico)
The recognize outstanding K12 sustainability service learning projects and leaders. The winners are:
- Deep Impact Award: 听(Guatemala City, Guatemala)
- Creative Approach Award: 听(New Haven, Connecticut)
- Broad Engagement Award: 听(Rome, Chieti and Pescara, Italy)
听The location of the 2020 Green Schools Conference and call for proposals will be announced soon. Learn more at .
Amanda Sawit serves as the Communications Manager for the USGBC.