News: Sacramento Schools Compete in Project Green
On Earth Day, 14 schools in the Sacramento Unified School District competed in an energy audit competition called Project Green. The competition brings together campuses from across the district to form student “green teams” supported by parents and staff to conduct “green audits” of their facilities. The teams work with district and local professionals to draft recommendations for improvements ranging from the installation of solar tubes to increase daylighting in classrooms to installing water-wise plumbing fixtures. Students present their recommendations to a panel of experts representing local non-profits that focus on creating healthy sustainable learning environments on Earth Day. Judges then evaluate each submission based on their audit, presentation and written report. Schools displaying the highest performance in these areas are awarded funding for their projects.
Two of the judges for Project Green were our very own Patty Karapinar and Heather Olson of the Arch Nexus Sacramento office. Patty commented that “Project Green has a lasting effect on students because they dive into sustainability in a very real way. The District actually funds the winning team’s project, so their school get to see their brainchild become reality and reap its benefits. The students were bundles of energy and excitement on presentation day!”
Project Green allows participants to play a vital role in the development, design, and implementation of projects that will transform the site for the benefit of the environment, staff, stakeholders, community, and especially for the students. Project Green allows students to learn, develop, and implement designs that not only support, but also improve resource conservation, environmental sustainability, and cleaner and healthier student life.
We would like to extend a special thanks to Rachel King and Sacramento Unified School District for allowing us to be a part of this fantastic program!
For more information on project green please visit www.scusd.edu/project-green-programs