Green Up Our Schools

Gilpin Montessori Elementary

Green Up Our Schools member since 2010

During the 3 years of the program, each school creates their own "green" plan to recycle more and waste less.

View photos of all the green activities in action.


Waste Reduction Projects Each school must complete a minimum of two waste reduction projects per year. Click on each title to view a more detailed description.

Year 1
Student Green Team Formed a group of eco-minded students to take on the responsibility of the recycling program and carry out green activities. (Learn more.)	2010-2011
Scratch Paper Reuse Boxes Launched a campaign to promote paper conservation, teaching the slogan "Use the Back, Jack!" and distributing scratch paper boxes to each class. (Learn more.)	2010-2011
Worm Bin Composting Implemented classroom worm composting bins for vegan food waste, constructed in 14-gallon containers kept indoors. Students are able to witness the decomposition process firsthand as food turns into soil. (Learn more.)	2010-2011
Commercial Composting Commercial composting is a service provided to the school by an outside company, similar to recycling. Hundreds of pounds of food & paper waste are hauled to a facility that processes it back into soil. The weekly collection system can handle the full volume of organic waste that comes out of the lunchroom, bathrooms, and classrooms. (Learn more.)	2010-2011
On Campus Composting (Learn more.)	2010-2011
Year 2
Reusable Silverware in the Lunchroom Plan to replace plastic utensils with reusable metal silverware to eliminate the amount of waste created in the lunchroom each day. (Learn more.)	2011-2012
Composting Expanded to Bathrooms Plan to expand commercial composting beyond the lunchroom to capture the paper towels thrown away in the bathrooms every day. Green bins will be placed in bathrooms for collection. (Learn more.)	2011-2012
Year 3
Reusable Dishes for Staff Lounge A set of reusable bowls, plates, cups, and silverware in the staff lounge helps reduce the waste created by disposables. (Learn more.)	2012-2013
Zero Waste Classroom Party Kits A Zero Waste Classroom Party Kit is a set of reusable dishes designed to eliminate the need for disposable plates, cups, and utensils during class festivities. (Learn more.)	2012-2013
Recycled Purchasing Policy A Recycled Purchasing Policy emphasizes the importance of buying goods with post-consumer recycled content to close the recycling loop by creating a demand for the kind of products that the school's recycling program creates. (Learn more.)	2012-2013

Waste Assessment Results

Every school in the program performs at least one waste assessment every year. This activity helps to show progress made and areas that still need improvement.

Percentage of Trash categorized as Recyclable
(Lower is better!)*

12%

25%

2010
(Fall)

2011
(Spring)

Year

*The presence of recyclable materials in the trash means students & teachers are not correctly sorting items they throw away. The lower the percentage, the more successful the recycling program.


Back to All Schools

The Green Up Our Schools program makes it easy to run the green team without requiring a lot of extra planning time outside the classroom -- it gives us meaningful direction in where we can take our kids.