December Newsletter!
In our final newsletter of 2022, our team are delighted to share our latest campaign: ‘Cut Your Carbon.’ Running from the 6th to 10th of February 2023, Cut Your Carbon is a national week of action, challenging Eco-Committees to raise awareness and cut the carbon footprint of their school. You can read more about the campaign below and click the links to access free resources and guides. Let’s Cut Carbon! In addition, you can also find links to free Eco-Schools Training and click through to our first ever Annual Eco-Schools Impact Report. Have a fantastic end to 2022, you’ve earnt it!
Cut Your Carbon
The Cut Your Carbon Campaign connects to 3 areas of everyday life that are having a devastating impact on our planet: clothing, energy-use, and food.
From the 6th to 10th of February Eco-Schools is challenging your school to deliver one of three big, fun, high-impact projects that will raise awareness, change behaviours, and Cut Your Carbon! Each project comes with an easy-to-understand delivery guide, and all the resources needed to make the project a success in your school! Check out the projects and resources now and prepare to Cut Your Carbon!
Project 1: (Re)LoveOurStuff
The clothing industry is responsible for almost 10% of global carbon emissions, it’s time we changed our fashion habits and learned to (Re)LoveOurStuff!
This project supports Eco-Committees to plan, advertise, and deliver a special one-off event in school – a pop-up, second-hand clothes shop! This activity will generate a buzz, engage your whole school, save parents and pupils money, divert clothing from landfill and raise awareness about the environmental costs of the fashion industry. A perfect project for our Marine, Waste, and Global Citizenship topics!
Project 2: Energy Investigators
More than 20% of the UK’s carbon footprint comes from generating energy. For schools in 2022, this will result in a whopping £1 billion of energy bills. It’s time to reduce our carbon emissions, it’s time to save money, it’s time to become Energy Investigators!
This project supports pupils to review energy-usage in their school before stepping up and delivering 5 energy-reducing activities across the campaign week. Each activity is designed to raise awareness, change behaviours, and cut carbon emissions. A perfect project for our Energy and School Grounds topics!
Project 3: Plant-Based Portions
Food Production is responsible for more than 33% of global greenhouse gas emissions, something has to give – it’s time we eat more Plant-Based Portions.
This project encourages pupils to raise awareness about the environmental and health benefits of plant-based foods, before delivering 5 ‘plant-based actions’ across the campaign week. Actions are designed to inspire change in three key groups: schoolmates, parents/guardians, and school caterers. A perfect project for our Healthy Living and Biodiversity topics!
Carbon Facts – This month a fact for each of the three strands of our Cut Your Carbon campaign – available (alongside other factsheets) in the resource packs!
- The number of clothing items produced each year has at least doubled since the year 2000, a big cause of this is fast fashion. Fast fashion is clothing that is designed to be disposable because it is mass produced, cheap, and designed quickly in response to the latest trends.
- Even if fossil fuel emissions were eliminated immediately, emissions from the global food system alone would make it impossible to limit global warming to 1.5°C and difficult to even realise a 2°C target – major changes in how food is produced are needed for a safe climate.
- 60%of the energy used in education settings in the UK comes from fossil fuels, which release carbon into the atmosphere contributing to the climate crisis, in fact schools and universities are responsible for 36% of total public sector building emissions.
Eco-Schools Training Session 2
You can now sign up for Session 2 of Eco-Schools Online Training. This free session is a chance for a mid-point catch up to share ideas, discuss progress and talk through any barriers you might have encountered whilst working through the Eco-Schools programme this year. The session will also contain an in depth look at Step 4: Curriculum Links and Step 5: Informing and Involving. All are welcome to attend, even if you didn’t make it to session 1, but sign up quickly, two dates are already fully booked!
Eco-Schools Impact Reporting
Click below to read our first ever Eco-Schools Annual Impact Report. The report is a celebration of every young eco-warrior in England and the educators who tirelessly support them to make a difference. The report highlights the colossal positive impacts you and your Eco-Committees created during the last twelve months. Read it and be proud.
Term 1 of 2022-2023 is nearly complete and with that the Eco-Schools Team wish you a happy holiday, filled with family, friends, and plenty of the three r’s (rest, relaxation, and rejuvenation)! Thank you for your amazing work in 2022, and we can’t wait to work with you to Cut Carbon in 2023!
