whiteeli
Registered: December 2011
City/Town/Province: Potosi
Posts: 1
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The environment is one of the most precious gifts we’ve been given. Living on the outskirts of Potosi, a small, rural town in Wisconsin, has afforded me the opportunity to experience the wonder and beauty of nature on an everyday basis. Through this constant exposure to the natural world, I developed an interest in the environment which evolved into passion as I became more aware of the issues threatening the environment. It was this passion that compelled me to take action to protect the environment that I love and value so much. I began making changes at home, like recycling more and shutting off lights. I even started a compost pile in my backyard, but I realized that more progress could be achieved if others became involved. Wondering what I could do, I contemplated many ideas. The next thing I knew I was writing a charter, talking with an advisor, and eventually meeting with the school principal. Shortly thereafter in the early fall of 2010, the first ever Potosi High School Environmental Club was formed.
2011 was a great year for the club. Membership grew to over 40 members and I am proud to say the club is now one of the largest and most active in the school. Under my leadership the club has accomplished over 15 initiatives that included sponsoring a “Nature Photo of the Month” contest, maintaining a “Species of the Week” bulletin board in the elementary school, and removing recyclable items from bleachers after basketball games. Our four primary initiatives of 2011 were improving the school’s recycling program, coordinating an “Earth Week” celebration, installing a bat house, and educating elementary students about bats.
One issue that needed to be addressed was our school’s recycling program. Although the school had a plastic and aluminum recycling program in place, recycling bins were located only in the cafeteria. The club believed that both students and faculty would be more inclined to recycle if bins were located in more places in the school. Therefore, we placed recycling bins in nearly every high school classroom, in the lobbies, and in the library. Our efforts were successful; recycling increased. Additionally, we expanded the types of items we recycled by working with TerraCycle, an organization that works to recycle items that are traditionally difficult to recycle. We now collect and recycle items such as Capri Sun-style juice pouches, chip bags, ink cartridges, candy wrappers, and empty glue sticks. This year, the club has recycled over 20,000 of these nontraditional items that otherwise would have been destined for a landfill. Not only do our recycling efforts benefit the environment, but they also benefit the club and the community. Redemption of nontraditional items generates revenue for the club, and the money redeemed from aluminum cans supports the summer youth baseball and softball teams. The club is now responsible for weekly collection of the school’s plastics, aluminum cans, and nontraditional items.
Our club was very excited about celebrating Earth Day so instead of limiting the celebrations to a single day, we made it a weeklong event. Because the Potosi community is so small, grades K-12 reside in a single school building. This provided the Environmental Club the opportunity to engage students of all ages and faculty too. We used this week to educate the entire school about simple things that could be done to benefit the environment. Each day had a theme and activities that supported the theme. As president, I led the planning effort and coordinated the daily events with the school principal. Throughout the week, I managed the master schedule and confirmed that the club members were prepared for the assignments they had chosen. Each day, I addressed the student body via the public address system and explained the day’s theme and actions that could be taken regarding the theme. Monday’s theme was recycling so I arranged to have the director of the local recycling company come to the school and speak to high school students about the importance of recycling and applications of recycled materials. On “Turned Off Tuesday” the focus was saving energy. The club asked teachers to turn off at least half of the lights in their classroom to save energy and also to demonstrate the amount of natural lighting that is available from windows; the teachers were very cooperative, and some continued to leave half of their classroom lights off for the rest of the school year. Wednesday’s focus was conserving resources and waste management. We challenged the students to minimize the amount of items they threw away out of convenience. For “Waste -Not Wednesday,” the club placed stop signs on the trash bins in the school. Under the word “STOP”, the sign read, “Can it be reused?” and “Can it be recycled?” This was only a one-day event, but some teachers chose to keep the signs on the trash bins in their classrooms year round. On Thursday, we focused on educating students on how they can reduce their carbon footprints. We sponsored a “Carpool to School Day” in the high school. The day was very successful as the number of cars in the student parking lot was reduced by 48%.
Throughout Earth Week, Environmental Club members also visited the elementary classrooms and read the book The Lorax by Dr. Seuss. Using a discussion guide that I developed, the environmental club members led discussions regarding the environmental themes present in the book and also changes the students could make in their own lives to benefit the environment. Both the elementary teachers and the club were very pleased with the outcomes. To involve the middle school students, club members lead an environmental trivia activity during the middle school homeroom times. The week was a huge success. The entire student body and faculty (totaling near 400 individuals) participated in events that proved how the collective efforts of individuals really can make a significant difference.
The village of Potosi is located on the eastern border of the Mississippi River and is home to many bats. Therefore, I was particularly concerned after hearing about the massive bat die-offs in the eastern part of the country due to White Nose Syndrome and that it was moving westward. Equally concerning to me was that many bat species’ existence was already in danger due to habitat loss. I knew that bats are an essential species for many reasons, but I also knew that many people did not understand or appreciate them. I brought my concerns to the attention of the club and they agreed that something should be done to address these issues. We devised a project that would not only help combat the declining bat population, but would also help increase awareness and understanding of bats. Using funds of $150 acquired from a C.D. Besadny Conservation Grant I wrote, the club installed a bat house near the Grant River in the spring of 2011. The house provides safe summer-roosting habitat for the bats to raise their young which aids the survival of the species. Club members visited the house during the summer and were pleased to find bat droppings under it, which indicated that the house was occupied.
In the fall of 2011, the club coordinated a “Batty for Bats” education week in the elementary school. I developed the curriculum for the week and coordinated the schedule for classroom visits. At the beginning of the week, elementary students took a pre-quiz about bat myths and bat facts; the average score was 65%. During the week, Environmental Club members visited all of the elementary classrooms (grades kindergarten through five) and educated students about bats using a Power Point presentation that I created. Presentation topics included bat myths versus bat facts, the importance of bats, White Nose Syndrome, and what people could do to help bats. The club members also talked about their experiences with installing the bat house to show how action can be taken locally. After the presentations, the club members distributed the post-quiz, gave students a sheet of bat facts to take home to share with their families, and then helped the students assemble a bat craft. I was also a presenter, and it was so rewarding to see how interested the students were in the presentation and how excited they were to participate in the craft. The average score on the post-quiz was 88%, a 23% increase in general bat knowledge compared to the pre-quiz. The “Batty for Bats” project was very successful. Our project was published in the local newspaper and in the Potosi School District Newsletter. The club hopes that our work with the elementary school helped elementary students gain an appreciation of bats that they will carry with them into adulthood.
The Environmental Club provides high school students an opportunity for involvement and an opportunity to improve the environment. The actions of the club also inspire others to take action and protect the environment. As the club president, I am responsible for leading the discussions regarding club initiatives, coordinating the initiatives, and encouraging and motivating others to get involved. Additionally, I play an active role in implementing club initiatives. I am proud of the leadership that I provide, and I am equally proud of the club members and the outcomes achieved. Founding and leading the Environmental Club has solidified how passionate I am about both the environment and leading people. Receiving a 2011 “Making a Difference Award” from Potosi High School recognizing my contributions to the successes of the Environmental Club was a positive affirmation of my belief that one person who is willing to act and lead others can achieve results that benefit many. Presiding as president of the club has helped me develop my leadership and managerial skills and has provided me with the direction and confidence to pursue a degree in Environmental Studies. It is my intention to use my education to obtain a career though which I will be able to apply my abilities to benefit the environment and society on a greater scale.
The environment is an essential element of our existence and everyone needs to work together to preserve it. I find myself compelled to continue to lead environmental preservation, improvement, and education efforts in order to ensure that future generations will be able to experience and enjoy the natural world as I do.
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