The Green Squad

The Green Squad is a project of NRDC, the Natural Resources Defense Council, a national environmental group with more than 500,000 members, and the Healthy Schools Network, an organization that works to protect children's environmental health in schools.

The Green Squad teaches kids about the relationship between their schools and environmental and health issues. The site is designed primarily for students in fifth through eighth grade, but also offers information for younger and older students as well as parents and teachers.

The project was made possible through the support of Citigroup Foundation and The F. A. O. Schwarz Family Foundation and was designed and developed by Sullivan & Co.

The site includes downloadable information and lists to help them make their school healthier, safer and more environmentally friendly by studying what the school uses and how its practices affect the environment both in and around the school, the community and even the rest of the world.

The site also provides a progress report form for listing possible areas for improvement and fact sheets that contain information for staff and administration. Suggestions include turning equipment off when it's not being used, turning off computer monitors, using the sun's energy to help keep the heat down and reduce the need for lights, regulating window usage, monitoring temperatures in different areas of the school and more. All of this information is presented with educational background to make the process a learning experience.
The Green Squad is a great way to get students involved, teach them sustainable practices and help them learn about the environment and find out what a healthy school is all about.

More information is available at Natural Resources Defense Council and from the Healthy Schools Network.

Featured

  • Fellowes Expands Finish and Wall-Covering Options for Architectural Wall Systems

    Fellowes Architectural Solutions has expanded the materials library for its architectural wall systems with a series of new finishes and wall-covering options intended to provide architects and designers with additional choices for commercial interiors, according to a company news release.

  • Planning with Clarity: Using AI to Make Better Campus Decisions, Not Just Better Designs

    Higher education leaders are being asked to make increasingly high-stakes decisions about campus facilities amid greater uncertainty than ever before. Social and economic pressures, shifting enrollment, and evolving learning models compete with growing deferred maintenance needs to strain even the most robust infrastructure budgets.

  • UCF Modernizes College of Hospitality Management

    The University of Central Florida in Orlando, Fla., recently completed a major renovation effort for the Rosen College of Hospitality Management, according to a news release. The project modernized 77,600 square feet worth of academic classrooms, teaching labs, and collaborative spaces to support both students and faculty.

  • URI Cuts Underwater Ribbon on New Ocean Robotics Laboratory

    The University of Rhode Island recently held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for a new Ocean Robotics Laboratory at its Narragansett Bay Campus, according to a news release. Two students used a remotely operated vehicle to cut an underwater ribbon in a 30-by-20-foot test tank.