Transcript Slide 1

The
EkoSkola
Programme
The 7 Steps
Environmental
Review
Eco Code
Informing &
Involving
Curriculum
Work
Eco Schools Committee
Action Plan
Monitoring &
Evaluation
EkoSkola Committee
• The committee is the core of the EkoSkola process,
responsible for organising and directing activities.
• Consisting of the stakeholders of the school community
(pupils, teachers, cleaners, caretakers, parents and
governors), the committee is democratic and run by the
students themselves.
• Whatever the type of school or age group, student
involvement in the committee is essential.
Environmental Review
• Work begins with an environmental audit of the environmental
impact of the school with the aim of identifying issues for
action.
• Pupils are involved in this work ranging from assessing the
level of litter on school grounds to checking the building for
inefficiencies such as leaky taps or electric
equipment left overnight.
Target Areas for
Environmental Review
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Energy
Water
Litter
Consumer patterns
Waste management
Paper usage
Vandalism
Biodiversity
Animal rights
Climate change
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Nutrition patterns
Healthy lifestyles
Transport
Road safety
Landscaping
Buildings
Cultural heritage
Leisure facilities
Citizenship
Globalisation
Environmental Review
Results
Do you make use of recycled papers?
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Form 1
Form 2
Form 3
Yes
Form 4
No
Form 5
Environmental Review
Results
Are lights turned on in empty rooms?
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Form 1
Form 2
Form 3
Yes
Form 4
No
Form 5
Action Plan
• The information from the environmental review is used to
identify priorities and create an action plan
• The Action Plan sets realistic targets and deadlines to
improve environmental performance on specific issues.
• Schools should aim to achieve >75% of the results of
their stated action plan.
Action Plan (an example)
Monitoring & Evaluation
• Ensures that progress towards targets and any necessary
changes to the action plan are made and that achievement
is recognised.
• It also ensures that environmental education is an on-going
process in the school.
Curriculum Work
• Classroom study of themes such as energy, water and waste
are undertaken by most students.
• The whole school should be involved in practical initiatives …
e.g. saving water, recycling materials and preventing litter.
• Where environmental education is not part of the national
curriculum, recommendations are made as to how these
themes can be incorporated.
Informing & Involving
• Schools are encouraged to interact with the wider community
when preparing action plans.
• As local authorities, businesses and the wider community are
involved, Local Agenda 21 is brought directly into schools.
• An awareness raising programme keeps the school and
community informed of progress through classroom displays,
school assemblies and press coverage.
Outreaching process
EkoSkola
Committee
Active EkoSkola notice board
Exhibitions of students’ work
Addressing the whole
school about EkoSkola
related issues during school
assemblies
EkoSkola featured in school’s main calendar
events (e.g. parents’ day, prize days)
Articles in the local press
Involvement of
local authorities …
… and local businesses
Participation at parliament
Eco-Code
• Each school produces its own code setting out what the
students are striving to achieve.
• The Eco-Code is displayed in various places within the
school and is recognised by the students as a statement of
beliefs and intents.
The Awards
• A school that implements the seven steps of the programme
can apply for one of the three EkoSkola awards: a bronze
certificate, a silver certificate or a Green Flag … depending
on how much it has achieved.
• The Green Flag award is renewed every two years.
Basic qualification
criteria
The school needs to demonstrate that it has:
• applied the 7 steps of the EkoSkola process.
• achieved and given evidence that at least 2/3 of the objectives in
the Action Plan were achieved.
• used an active communication strategy, to inform the whole
school community of its activities. It should not be a programme
for the EkoSkola Committee only.
• involved in some capacity the Local Authority(ies) – a required
element of Local Agenda 21.
• addressed the core EkoSkola themes (i.e. Water, Energy and
Waste … and now Climate Change and Carbon Footprint).
• school established networking links or contacts with local and
foreign Eco-Schools