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" What you do to Mother Earth, you do to her sons and daughters." Chief Seattle
Hi! We are a club that is concerned about environmental stewardship. We believe that people care about the things they understand. Our club is three years old and has taken an advocacy role in our school, community, state and nation. We have even been to Washington, D.C. and met with the staff of both senators from our state. We worked with the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation Green School program and did an environmental audit of our school which directed our efforts. A through needs assessment was necessary to ensure we were working in areas validated by data with sustainable results. Our audit lead us to the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development Energy Division and TEEN (Tennessee Energy Education Network) who provided training and guidance for our many energy projects. Community service is very important to us. We established a goal to work with our community and share what we had learned. Both local and county governments have been very supportive and open to our findings. Start a club in your school or community. There are many people to help like Earth Day Network, National Wildlife Federation, Do Something and Teens for Planet Earth. Be sure and go to their web sites and check them out. Don't forget the great services offered by yur state and national parks which provide environmental training at very reasonable cost. Most of them offer leadership training courses which helped us to bond and learn to work as a group. Every year we attend a three day retreat where we undergo leadership training, team building, set goals, review last years work, and learn more about the environment. If we can help your group, feel free to contact us.
There are simple things we all can do to be an environmental steward! Check it out!
At Fayette Academy, a K-12 private school, the Ecology Club has taken the lead in improving school, home, and community operations improving the environment. Energy and environmental stewardship was the focus, which had far-reaching effects on the campus and in the community. A student environmental evaluation of the school led to a presentation at a school board meeting about energy. The school board then adopted an energy policy for Fayette Academy which the students prepared: We commit our institution to support efforts to ensure our campus is more energy efficient and will develop and use alternative and renewable energy sources that are ecologically sound, socially just, and economically viable.
Students recommended a 40% cut in energy use, development of renewable energy sources, and adoption of LEED standards for new construction on the campus. This summer one of the buildings is getting thermal window replacements, thermal doors and insulation on the ceiling. Eventually, the school board would like to obtain solar panels to help power the school. However, realizing that current energy infancy is a prominent issue, they made a start by replacing all of the gym lights with energy-efficient alternatives that school officials said cost about $6,000 for the replacement and will save the school some $36,000 over a six-year period. Electricity savings are soon to come. They also changed settings on the gas hot water heaters, which were set above the recommended levels and just recently replaced every manual thermostat in eleven buildings to programmable. This year the Biology II class will do a three year comparison of usage and climate conditions to document savings and present it to the school board. The Ecology Club made a presentation to the city of Somerville's Board of Alderman about renewable energy. The outcome was a pledge to join TVA's Green Power Switch Program. The city police department was undergoing a renovation, so they invited students to make recommendations about the lighting. Using a "flicker-checker", students found that a lighting upgrade is needed to save electricity and costs.
