Eco Schools
Today is Britain’s first ever ‘Green Day’ which over 30,000 pupils across the country will be taking part in! Green Day gives pupils the chance to discuss environmental issues and put into practice making their school more sustainable.
Pupils are encouraged to wear a green item of clothing to school and to walk or cycle from their houses! Maths lessons will be used to calculate the students’ carbon footprint and in geography they will attempt to design a sustainable city.
‘‘The response from schools to the Green day project has been extraordinary. There is clearly a huge appetite for practical ideas which help young people make the connections between climate change and the buildings and places around us.” (Matt Bell, CABE’s Director of education.)
Schools in Birmingham, Bristol, Leeds and Nottingham are taking part in Green Day in association with CABE and more than thirty schools alone in Birmingham will be taking part.
More news regarding eco-schools is that by 2020 the Government wants every single school in the UK to be a sustainable school. The Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) launched their Sustainable Schools Framework in 2006, the Secretary of State for Education, MP Alan Johnson set out challenging and long-term aspirations for schools to learn about sustainable development and practices into everyday school life.
Eco-Schools is an international programme that teaches schools how to be eco-friendly by providing a framework to help introduce these principles and ideas into school life. Eco-Schools is one of five environmental education programmes run internationally. It is now really easy for different schools to communicate with each other worldwide or alternatively find instructions on how to register your school. The programme is free and deals with all schools, primary, secondary, nursery orother more specific schools.
Below is a link to a map demonstrating how eco-friendly different primary schools across Birmingham are:
London needs help getting greener!
Residents of Birmingham will be pleased to know that despite being renowned for many things we might not be so proud of, ‘brummies’ are not so bad at recycling!
Surely our capital city should be setting a good example, but in fact recycling rates in London are among the lowest in the UK. Whilst the city’s appetite for cycling appears to be on the increase apparently there is a serious lack of recycling bins in the residential areas of London and the provision of recycling bins for mixed plastics is particularly poor.
“While Londoners’ facilities for recycling at home have improved greatly over recent years, it can be a real headache finding decent recycling facilities when you’re out and about – whether on the Tube, out shopping or at a football match.” (Darren Johnson, deputy chair of the London Assembly environment committee)
“London is a very fast-paced city, and I think people would welcome being able to recycle ‘on the go’.” (The Mayor)
The report, published by the London Assembly’s environment committee, says that if all of London’s plastic currently sent to landfill and incinerated was recycled, it would save around 1.2million tonnes of CO2 per year which would amount to £44 million pounds on cost!
So recycling “On the go” is perhaps something all fast-paced cities can do to prevent people’s fast-paced lifestyle getting the better of their greener side.
“People will soon find it easier to recycle when they’re out and about. ‘Recycle on the Go’ is a new drive to put accessible recycling bins in public places, developed by Defra, Recycle Now and Encams (Keep Britain Tidy).It’s already started, with The Royal Parks rolling out a recycling bin pilot in Hyde Park over the next three months. A good practice guide and a code of practice will help those responsible for public places to make recycling easy and accessible.” (Joan Ruddock, Waste and Recycling Minister Defra UK)
Ecological Recruitment
Ever though about getting a ‘green’ job? There are lots of jobs that people might not consider a career path that can be found in the business of recycling. In fact, with Britain’s current economic climate getting paid to save your environment seems like a good and life enriching option.
“Green jobs represent mankind’s best chance to escape the need to burn fossil fuels to power ourselves with electricity.” (Donald Pennington AC Associated Content)
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1748776/green_jobs_will_they_solve_work_search.html?cat=3
So how do you go about finding a green job? One way to become more familiar with green jobs in your area is to get involved with the green way of life! Attend local environmental social events so you meet more green people! There are loads of environmental events in Birmingham such as ‘Birmingham Friends of the Earth’ who meet monthly at The Rainbow Warehouse Digbeth. The website has details on how you can get involved and become part of this association.
http://www.birminghamfoe.org.uk/the-news/Get-Involved/index.php
The green job market has been described as “swelling amid the recession.” (Michael Szabo Reuters UK).There are said to be jobs in renewable energy, energy efficiency, sustainability and social responsibility sectors.
“The green job market has proven resilient despite the recession and we have seen a steady increase in jobs being created.” (Andy Cartland, Managing Director at Acre)
