Eco Schools 2014 grants awarded and project summaries

Calare Public School

Lifting the lid on lunch and scraps

Our kitchen garden has chickens that need feeding so they can produce organic matter for the garden. We have over 700 students and 50 staff who produce food scraps during ‘Crunch and Sip’ and at lunch. Many of our students also eat processed foods that are packaged in plastic wrappers. A school wide focus on recycling food scraps and eating wholesome food without packaging would drastically reduce the level of waste produced at the school. To ensure success of the project, staff and students will be educated on ways to recycle waste emphasising that eating fresh food will minimise waste production.

Camdenville Public School

Natural and cultural spaces project

Students are working in authentic project based learning groups to address the enduring understanding of ‘How can we enhance our natural spaces, whilst recognising and celebrating local cultural significance?’ Students will be engaged in surveying, designing and constructing an Aboriginal bush tucker and sensory garden, while building a biodiversity learning space.

Conargo Public School

Children and chicken are a good mix

Conargo School has a large number of special needs students and we would like to add a hen house to the school grounds. This would mean that students would have to collect food scraps from lunches and then feed the hens and collect the eggs. We are a small rural school however many of our students travel 30 kilometres out from Deniliquin and are not exposed to the rural life style. We would like teach them how hens can be part of a sustainable system and the benefits that they can provide. This could become a lifelong skill where all students could learn responsibility, animal husbandry, and respect for animals.

Coomealla High School

Environmental outdoor learning centre/native plant vegetation corridor

Design, develop and construct an environmental outdoor learning centre, which would be used as an educational tool to teach sound, sustainable, ecological practices to students using native bush-tucker and traditional Aboriginal medicinal plant species. Solar panels will be installed which could produce electricity for lighting and reduce the school’s carbon footprint. The outdoor learning area will be connected to vegetation corridors fenced in across the school. These will be planted with traditional bush tucker and medicinal plants used by the region’s indigenous people to enable students to study the reproductive and growth patterns of the plants. We would call it ‘Looking after Country’. Students will also observe the adaptations of native species to survive in the unique Sunraysia environment. Native animals and birds would be able to use the vegetation corridors to travel safely across the school grounds. We have a desert environment across the road from the school and a river down the other side.

Cooranbong Public School

Reconnecting with our heritage and our environment

The current bush tucker garden is underused with little understanding of what the plants are or how to use them. The aim is to educate students and teachers on what bush tucker is and how to use it. The focus will be on ecological and Aboriginal environmental practices. This will include investigating with a local Elder, in a hands-on workshop, the traditional food collection practices, methods of food creation and tools used for food collection. Students will relocate and extend the existing bush tucker garden to increase biodiversity within the school environment. Students will research and photograph the plants and design identifying tags and create a plant map.

Crescent Head Public School

The Goolawah eco-learning space

The Goolawah eco-learning space comprises an outdoor environmental learning area, featuring Aboriginal themed native plant and animal design and a native sensory garden. The area will link the schools bush tucker garden, food garden and worm farm to a central outdoor learning space where pupils can participate in hands on activities that complement school based environmental programs including waterwise, waterwatch crunch ‘n’ sip and lunch munchers programs. The Goolawah learning space will enhance the schools ability to provide outdoor learning experiences emphasising conservation, biodiversity and encouraging action and lifestyle change.

Cronulla High School

Revegetation for biodiversity and educational resources

The project will revegetate an area at front of the school which has been damaged by recent public works, producing a habitat for local plant and animal species. The local community will have an example of landscaping using local Indigenous plant species as well as a demonstration of current environmental practices. This site will be a resource for teaching years 7 to 10, especially science, Biology, Earth and Environmental Science and Geography. Earth and Environmental Science students study land rehabilitation as part of their syllabus requirements. Students in the environmental group will build their skills by planning and creating a native garden. The school will use recognised revegetation methods to plant species used for bush tucker and as resources by local Australian Aboriginal people. This degraded site will become a focal point at the entry to the school.

Cundletown Public School

Cundletown environmental program

Cundletown Public School is a mid-sized primary school located in an area north of Taree. It is a small community in a semi-rural setting. The school is presently establishing vegetable gardens that will supply the canteen with healthy eating options. Our gardening club has 55 Kindergarten to Year 6 children actively involved. Senior students have taken on leadership roles in this. The aim is to expand these environmental projects to include a composting area, worm farming, fruit tree planting, mulching of existing garden areas and empowering the children to educate others.

Enngonia Public School

Water smart kids save school oval in remote NSW

Enngonia is a remote village situated at the edge of the Great Artesian Basin, relying solely on artesian water. Drought and water restrictions placed on the village meant that the school could not keep watering its oval which was watered by sprinklers and hoses. Constructing a watering system using timers and underground pipe will enable the school to maintain a water efficient outdoor oval. Students, staff and the community are very aware of the need to be water wise through our study of climate change and how the drought affected Enngonia. Sustainability is the key to maintaining the school environment.

Faulconbridge Public School

A class amongst the gum trees

Faulconbridge Public School is fortunate to contain remnant bushland within its grounds. Over the past year, students have helped to create an environmental walk through this bushland. By creating a new outdoor learning area, students will be able to learn more about their local natural environment as teachers use the setting as a resource across multiple elements of the school curriculum. With the school marking its 50th anniversary in 2015, the creation of the outdoor learning area will be the perfect opportunity for the school community to discover and interact with the natural and cultural heritage of the area.

Glenmore Park High School

Recycling zone for resource recovery and reuse

To establish a recycling zone in which green waste and mixed recyclable waste, particularly aluminium cans and PET bottles, will be added to the school paper recycling program. Highly visible, colour coded waste collection containers placed strategically throughout the school will increase student awareness of the opportunities for recycling and minimise effort needed for them to participate. Green waste from the food technology department will be processed by students on site using a worm farm and compost bins, and will be reused in the school food garden. Cans and bottles sorted by students will be sent to resource collection centres.

Goolmangar Public School

Goolmangar School koala community connections

Koalas are under threat from habitat loss, disease, predation from dogs and fatalities on roads. Habitat has been cleared and fragmented. Goolmangar school students will work in partnership with Friends of the Koala, Dorroughby Environmental Education Centre and five other local schools (Coffee Camp, Larnook, Blakebrook, Wyrallah Road and Nimbin Central School) to learn about local koala populations, their significance and threats to them. Students will participate in direct actions to help local koala populations including propagating koala habitat trees, planting and developing resource materials that will contribute to increasing community awareness about koalas and improving the extent of Koala habitat in Lismore.

Hastings Public School

Rainforest classroom and sensory play-space

Our project will create a rainforest outdoor classroom and sensory play-space. It will include native plants, wildlife habitat, interpretive signage, student art, classroom seating and use recycled materials. This unique learning area will extend ongoing work preserving our school’s remnant rainforest, and students will be part of the environment while learning about sustainability through Science, Human Society and its Environment (HSIE) and Creative Arts. We will involve students in designing and creating, work collaboratively with local environmentalists and artists and incorporate ideas from our playground research. Students will explore biodiversity through their senses, connect with nature and develop a sense of place and environmental stewardship.

Immaculate Heart of Mary – Sefton

Inspiring a love of nature

The purpose of this project is to collectively create a beautiful garden that students can enjoy for years to come. There is a large area of land behind our school hall that is currently unused. If provided a grant we would love to create a beautiful garden there. Humans love nature because they find beauty in it, and the idea behind this garden is that it will inspire students to appreciate our environment, and to find beauty in its stunning colours and patterns. Not all students live in houses with backyards. Not all are able to visit botanical gardens. Having a garden in our school would provide a springboard for a lifetime of love for nature.

James Busby High School

Renewable gardens

Previous attempts by the Support Unit to create a health garden have failed through a lack of water over the holidays and frost bite in winter. This project will address these faults by creating a glasshouse watering system, drawing water from the school’s existing storm water catchment tanks to a sprinkler system via a solar powered pump. These renewable features will be supplemented by a sustainable worm farm, using current food wastage from the Food Technology classes. To hide the pump system native  plants have been selected to attract, feed and hopefully house threatened birdlife identified by the local council.

John Therry Catholic High School

Sustainable living and working outdoor poultry space

The project will be the creation of a chicken pens. The purpose of the project will be to provide the school community with an opportunity to experience authentic animal husbandry curriculum outcomes; teach responsible social skills and encourage greater participation in sustainable living activities and concepts and therefore transferring these skills into their homes. The use of the project across multiple key learning areas will promote sustainability through hands on learning experiences and enhance our school’s commitment to cross curriculum outcomes. John Therry has a significant number of disadvantaged and learning supported students and the project is needed to encourage and empower our students to engage with their learning in a practical and fulfilling way. The project would encourage social responsibility and model sustainable practices to our students and therefore our wider community.

Lismore Public School

Mother Nature is calling you to the yarning garden

We want to create a nurturing, co-operative garden for students, community and staff to bring learning alive and join together various skill levels to achieve a common goal. We visualise a garden where we can connect with the environment and learn about food (especially indigenous bush foods and other healthy food options) water and resources. We want it to be a place where we can engage in an outdoor learning classroom experience – a place where everyone can succeed in their learning. We want it to be a place to gather, to experiment and to engage our students. Our students and community can view working examples of renewable energy, urban agriculture and thoughtful use of land and water. Our garden will be especially designed and maintained by our students from our special needs units, gifted and talented members, and all classes in the school on a rotating basis. Sensory, hands on learning activities where students can learn through exploration is our goal with opportunities to share to foster understanding and friendship.

Meadowbank Public School

Harmony and sensory native stingless bee garden

The harmony and sensory native stingless bee garden at Meadowbank Public School will provide the school with funds to continue our focus on sustainability and begin to bring back local fauna. Our school is learning about the local ecosystem and is increasingly aware of the importance of harmony between the community, plants and animals. Native bees are the perfect way to illustrate how communities work together to provide for the greater good and how their destruction has an enormous impact on our local and global communities, all while showcasing the importance that one small member makes to the community at large.

Miller Public School

Learnscapes that engage the senses and excite the imagination!

To create an inclusive and exciting outdoor learning space for students from mainstream (K-6), a special education Support Unit and the transition to school program in a range of cross curricular activities. These would include: Creative and Performing Arts (CAPA) – music and movement, Personal Development, Health and Physical Education (PDHPE) – social play, problem solving and Human Society and its Environment (HSIE) – environmental sustainability, cultural perspectives and Aboriginal perspectives. This will turn a currently underused outdoor area into a flexible learning and developmental play space that will incorporate a range of everyday recycled items in innovative ways that stimulate the senses and engage our students.

Mogo Public School

Dhangaa dhama gabun: Eat very good food

Mogo Public School is a small school of 42 students, 66 percent of which identify as being Aboriginal. Our aim for this project is to create a bush tucker garden, a native sensory garden and an outdoor learning area. This successful project will engage and connect our students and the wider community to their country, whilst learning about sustainable and self-sufficient living. This project will expose the students to new cultural experiences as part of our schools Aboriginal Language program and the Australian curriculum. The outdoor learning area will be used by students and the local community to come together to celebrate and hold cultural events.

Murwillumbah Public School

Bush tucker garden and outdoor learning space

Our outdoor learning area and bush tucker garden aim to increase student, family and community engagement, whilst providing hands-on and interactive learning opportunities that meet a variety of curriculum outcomes. Our hope is to refurbish the area outside our community resource room into a welcoming and purposeful space. Our aim is to create a bush tucker garden with our Aboriginal Community Group and develop seating and shade to set the space up as an outdoor learning area that teachers, students and community groups can share. Having this space will allow us to approach a variety of new learning projects.

Orange Public School

Mudyidharraa and Indigenous garden outdoor learning area

In 2012 addressing our Wiradjuri student and community needs, an indigenous garden was designed in workshops with students, parents, Wiradjuri Elders, and local Indigenous cultural representatives. The garden was blessed and earth turned in an Indigenous ceremony, and beds prepared. 85% of the garden was planted and mulched by the indigenous students and their families. We want to further develop the garden and surroundings to create an Outdoor Learning Area (OLA), with seating and hard scaping. We will create a serpent pathway to replace dirt pathways that become muddy in cold wet winters. This will facilitate further cultural learning and ensure that the area can be used year-round, and provide a place where stories, culture, history and modern literacy and numeracy learning can occur.

Pleasant Heights Public School

Creek bed rehabilitation and outdoor learning area extension

Students working with teachers, parents and local bushcare volunteers will participate in designing and implementing the restoration of a small piece of bushland on school grounds. Land either side of a dry creek bed will be weeded and revegetated with Indigenous plants to provide habitat for local species. Students will learn about the native species used and will be encouraged to adopt a plant for which they will have ongoing responsibility. Erosion of the banks sloping down to the creek will be stopped with geo-fabric, plantings and berms, reducing the presence of weeds and slippery areas, and mulch will be laid.

Shearwater the Mullumbimby Steiner School

Mullumbimby Creek riparian rainforest regeneration beyond Coolamon

Shearwater has been regenerating its 1.6-kilometre section of Mullumbimby Creek’s high conservation value riparian sub-tropical rainforest in stages every year over the past 15 years. We have regenerated over 1.2 kilometres. Over the past three years we have regenerated a 250-metre section and are now looking to extend further upstream another 50 metres. This area has a well-established but narrow band of mature native rainforest trees. We will work with Class 7 students to eliminate weeds and plant approximately 600 trees and 400 lomandra to expand the forest canopy and help control creek bank erosion.

St Anne’s Primary School

Recycling warriors

St Anne’s Primary School has identified the need to implement a waste reduction program. Waste generated at present is largely unsorted and predominately disposed of to landfill. St Anne’s Primary School would like to implement a waste management system, for reducing, reusing and recycling waste, including systems for collecting and recycling paper, glass and plastic. St Anne’s would like to implement a composting system to recycle organic waste generated from the food garden, and also from the canteen, staff room and from students’ lunch boxes. The compost generated would be used within the school garden, reducing the volume of organic waste being sent to landfill. This waste management and reduction project will assist students in understanding the importance of reducing, reusing and recycling to manage waste, and demonstrate sustainability by using compost produced at school within school gardens.

St Columba Anglican School

Year 5 outdoor learning area

To create and build an Aboriginal outdoor learning centre for the children to learn about the Aboriginal culture. Uncle Bill O’Brien, the Biripi Elder, will be assisting in the select of plants for the enclosure. We are seeking to provide signage around the school environment outline the when the plants are indigenous to the area their scientific and common names and whether they are food for local fauna.

St Ignatius College Riverview

Solar cooking schools challenge: Lane Cove/Hunters Hill network

A solar cooking challenge is a fun way to explore the environmental issues posed by the act of cooking. This project will use the sun as an alternative source of energy for cooking. A solar cooker will be purchased as a shared resource and circulated amongst thirteen schools in the Lane Cove/Hunters Hill Green Schools Network. Each school will be given a chance to create solar cooked meals. Engineers without Borders demonstrated sun cooking at the 2014 Earth Hour breakfast at Riverview, and will be asked to oversee the use of the cooker by the schools participating in this cooking challenge.

St John the Evangelist Catholic High School

Outdoor learning area to enhance our Indigenous bush tucker garden

This outdoor learning area will be part of the Indigenous bush tucker garden walk. The school has a significant Indigenous population and this project links in with other cultural initiatives in the school. Transforming this disused area of our school will provide an appealing outdoor learning area that will enhance our awareness and appreciation for local culture. The area would be available for students, staff and the wider community to utilise. The executive committee of the school and the principal see this area as a priority and are committed to the success of the project.

Tregeagle Public School

Enhancing koala habitat at Tregeagle Public School and surrounds

Tregeagle Public School is located in one of the core koala habitat areas in the Lismore local government area. The School has an active Junior Landcare Group which is committed to improving koala habitat in the school grounds and surrounding areas. Tregeagle Landcare Group mentors Tregeagle Public School Junior Landcare Group and plants will be used for ongoing prime koala habitat restoration in the Tregeagle community. This project will provide the facilities to enable the propagation of koala food trees for planting in the school grounds and in neighbouring properties. The pupils will learn skills such as seed collection, seed sowing, seedling potting, seedling maintenance and tree planting. Once the greenhouse is up and running the tree propagation activities will become an ongoing activity for the school for many years to come thereby greatly enhancing the local environment.

Trinity Catholic College Lismore

Trinity Tree Day – Wilson River rehabilitation

Our school is situated next to the Wilsons River in the Richmond Catchment area. The riparian zone of this river has become overgrown with weeds with a resulting lack of biodiversity. The project will actively involve students and staff in a tree-planting day in which native vegetation will be planted along the riverbank. Students will simultaneously participate in workshops run by local environmental organisations aimed at environmental education. The project will result in a significant physical benefit to the local environment, provide safe outdoor teaching areas for field studies, and teach students and staff about sustainability and conservation.

Tullamore Central School

Bush tucker Reconciliation and learning area

Our project proposes to turn a currently unused section of the school agriculture plot into a native bush tucker learning area. Students have been consulted on the best location for this garden, and will see it through from the planning phase to utilising some of the produce in the traditional manner in food technology classes. To complement this learning area, we will purchase a native stingless bee hive which will improve pollination of the surrounding plants, and increase local ecosystem resilience. With a relatively low indigenous enrolment at our school, we see this as a fantastic opportunity to connect and work with the local Wiradjuri community.

Wauchope High School

Wauchope High School yarning circle

The junior Aboriginal Education Consultative Group (AECG) is made up of Aboriginal students from years 7 to 12. The students have come together and collaborated to come up with the ‘yarning circle’ project which will be created at Wauchope High School. The ‘yarning circle’ will be a multi-purpose area designed as an education space where students will learn Aboriginal ways of caring for the land and protecting the environment. The AECG has liaised with the local community and will work in collaboration to create a space for all to come together to learn about Aboriginal culture in a culturally appropriate space.

Whitebridge High School

Energy efficiency at Whitebridge High School

Students at Whitebridge are generally unaware of energy usage in their school environment. Through the development of an energy audit process by Year 7 students, they will learn about the energy consumption of their school community. The development of the audit process will be guided by teaching staff trained in energy efficiency and through the monitoring and technical support of ClimateCam from Energy Hunter. ClimateCam will give the school a baseline measure of electrical consumption and a strategic plan to approach energy efficiency. The purchase of PowerMate energy monitors will allow students to measure energy usage of appliances in real time to order to make a case for change. Students and staff will work together to identify ways of minimising this energy use. The project opens up possibilities for students to explore different forms of energy and look at the environmental impacts of our energy consumption.

Willoughby Girls High School

Sustainable garden project

Willoughby Girls High School is located on the North Shore of Sydney. As such, the school is in the middle of a city environment and the students most commonly live in apartment buildings with limited or no garden access. The project aims to give students the opportunity to learn about sustainability and biodiversity. This will be achieved by creating and maintaining a garden which will include a water tank, a worm farm, compost bin and native Australian plants, including bush tucker plants. Students will learn about waste and water management as well as ecosystems and the promotion of biodiversity. Students will also experience working in an inclusive team. It will encourage and build teamwork skills among students of mixed abilities and cultures, as well as engaging life skills students in team work and sustainability.

Woy Woy South Public School

Living sustainably at Woy Woy South

The purpose of Woy Woy South Public School’s environment educational project is to teach students how to live a sustainable life. Teaching students how to grow vegetables, gather seeds to regrow vegetables, recycle and techniques to save power/water shows them simple, easy ways to live a lifestyle which supports the environment. Lessons will be conducted at school and will link to their lives and the environment outside of school. This will help students understand the importance of living with and looking after the environment by growing food, why we recycle and how to save water and power in the home.