It’s amazing how a single seed contains all the resources needed to sprout into a tree. This lone tree produces its own fruits and flowers, disperses its own seeds close by, and gradually becomes a rich, dense forest. What a great analogy for a school’s eco journey – just as the tiny acorn becomes a mighty oak, surrounded by woodland, so too can a single idea from a pupil, a teacher, a policy, grow into something vast and fruitful.
A Seed
A pupil, increasingly concerned about paper being wasted in some of her lessons, asked our business manager about the school’s recycling policy. The business manager came to me, knowing my passion for anything environmental. We found more students, and set up our eco committee – our first task: to tackle recycling. Pupils investigated precisely what could be recycled (as it turned out, cardboard, cans, empty aerosol containers, glass and plastic – a huge amount more than just paper); the site team ensured a recycling bin in every classroom, each with new labels attached; posters were made, assemblies delivered, and the local recycling centre ran virtual workshops during tutor time.
A realistic and achievable goal, from an issue raised by the pupils, is a good place to start: a seed had taken root.
A Lone Tree