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Students, parents, and teachers at P.S. 187 planted recycled textile potted plants as the first step towards building a rooftop garden for their school.
Students at P.S./I.S. 187 Hudson Cliffs on Cabrini Boulevard are getting a hands-on approach to conserving energy, going green, and doing their part in saving the planet, putting theory to practice in their very own classrooms.
Solar One, an organization dedicated to sustainability education, worked in conjunction with the New York City Department of Education, the Division of School Facilities, and the City’s Division of Energy Management, in a program entitled the Green Design Lab, an effort supported by Mayor Bloomberg’s goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in city-owned buildings.
Back in 2007, New York City released PLANYC, a sustainability plan aimed at curbing the city’s greenhouse gas emissions by 30 percent by 2017. One fundamental part of the program was to start the reduction effort with municipal buildings, especially public schools, which are responsible for a quarter of the city’s carbon emissions.
During the pilot program, P.S./I.S. 187 had the opportunity to join the “Green Cup Challenge” with the goal of reducing the school’s electricity usage. The school placed sixth in the city, reducing energy costs over 10 percent and earning a $5,000 award by the Mertz Gilmore Foundation. It will go to a continuing effort for energy reduction and sustainability.
Solar One’s program includes a blueprint for a year-long curriculum for student-led greening projects in public schools, using the physical buildings as laboratories for learning and making an environmental change with the help of students, teachers, custodians, and parents.
P.S./I.S. 187 received a $5,000 check from the Mertz Gilmore Foundation for its efforts to bring down energy costs during the "Green Cup Challenge." The Cabrini Boulevard school placed sixth in the city, reducing energy costs by over 10 percent.
School principal Cynthia Chory relied on the help of her fourth- and sixth-grade “energy squads,” groups of diligent students who volunteered for daily rounds around the classrooms to make sure lights were shut off and unused electronics unplugged.
“The kids really took an active role in the program. They became very interested, engaged, and committed to the program,” Chory said.
In order to organize the effort, students were taught once a week by Solar One educator Alex Smith on topics such as fossil fuels, nuclear power, climate change, and energy consumption. By taking trips to the boiler room, students learned how the building’s energy is produced as a whole. In anticipation of summer, and as a long-term project to help bring cooling costs down, students have also began planting a rooftop garden made of recycled textile potted plants.
“What’s special about this program is that it goes beyond the occasional field trip, or an after school program activity,” said Sarah Holloway, parent of a P.S. 187 third grader. “By providing the lessons in the form of a curriculum, students could learn and understand the implications of energy conservation in a hands-on approach that stuck with them beyond the classroom.”
Representatives from Solar One said that the long-term goal is to find a way to implement energy conservation into the curriculum in all schools.
For now, Chory is hoping to continue the Green Lab program. “This is definitely a long-term effort,” she said. “We are applying for a second year run. Being green is our philosophy and we believe in it.”
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