A Summary of 06-07 Events from Glebe's Great EarthCARE Team

June 12, 2007

Gardening

This fall, I persuaded a group of 15 Glebites (and even non-TWIGS faculty members) to try to hone their skills in gardening. I amassed rakes, shovels, hoes, work gloves and watering cans for all to use. We weeded, cleaned, raked, mulched and edged our “green space”. Then we dug and planted some bulbs, plants and bushes. We wanted mainly perennials because they require minimum maintenance, and faithfully come up year after year.

Our hard work was noted by many students and faculty members. The outdoor activity was a great success, a lot of fun, and hopefully, will produce a beautiful annual garden for all the community to admire. We plan to be back out again this spring to give the garden some TLC, and to view the fruits of our labour.

Stefan Boraks
TWIGS Member

Pop Tab Collection

T.W.I.G.S is encouraging Glebe students and staff to deposit their pop tabs into containers, which are available in many classrooms and throughout the school, in order to raise money to purchase two large “pogon” strollers. These vehicles will enable Clifford Bowey’s developmentally disabled students, who have mobility challenges, to participate in field trips and community walks.

If you are collecting pop tabs at home, you can add to our collection, by bringing them in and leaving them in my mail box.

Thank-you,
Mrs. Bolotenko
Lead Teacher

Twigs Treats

Every second Friday, TWIGS members sell home-baked goodies and hot chocolate in the Main Foyer. These sweet little delectables can be purchased after school for only 25 – 50 cents. The proceeds of this fundraiser are going towards the purchase of badly-needed bicycle racks for our school. To date this year, we have raised $492.00 and are hoping to reach our goal by the end of this school year.

Mrs. Bolotenko
Lead Teacher

L.E.D Lights Exchange

This past November, in partnership with Hydro Ottawa and Earthcare, TWIGS held a seasonal lights swap. We collected incandescent strands from the community, students and teachers of Glebe, in exchange for L.E.D. lights. Why?

To spread energy resources to more needed areas
To remove inefficient incandescent bulbs
L.E.D. lights use 95% less electricity
L.E.D. lights last 10 times longer than incandescent lights

We exchanged 110 incandescent strings for 55 L.E.D. light strands. Thank-you Glebe C.I. and the community for supporting our cause.

Maggie Crump
TWIGS Member

Green Member of the Month

Every month adult staff members of our school vie for the honour of being recognized for their environmental efforts. The recipient receives a Certificate and a prize (courtesy of Earthcare). His or her picture, showing why this honour was bestowed upon him/her, along with a copy of the Green Teacher Certificate, and a write-up of what they do to “Initiate Greener Spaces” is posted for display during an entire month in our very own glass showcase in the Main Foyer of the school.

Winners have been selected for a number of reasons: they cycle to school EVERY DAY of the school year (even in -40 C temperatures!); they reuse the paper coffee trays when they purchase more coffees; they reuse plastic bags by keeping a stack on hand in the gym for students to use for their gym/swimming clothes; they walk, or bus to work; they bring a litterless lunch to school every day; or they rescue wires, batteries, screws, tacks, hangers, etc., from garbage bins, and teach students how to make machines and robots out of these materials.

If you’re ever in the school building, please pass by the TWIGS display case and read about the environmental achievements of our “Green Teachers.”

Mrs. Bolotenko
Lead Teacher

Envirofair

TWIGS took part in Glebe Community's EnviroFair, which was held on Saturday, March 24, 2007, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Our goal was to propagate the theme of "REUSE and REDUCE", a concept we've been trying to instill in our school population. The EnviroFair was well attended by area residents, who were interested in finding out about activities that Glebe C. I.'s environmental club has initiated this year to help lessen harmful effects on the environment.

Six committee members took turns explaining to the viewers the items which were displayed on our table: examples of "litterless lunches" which parents can pack for their teenagers; and a display board with write-ups about the activities TWIGS has participated in during this school year (including preparing our perennial flower garden for the winter; an L.E.D. seasonal lights exchange; weekly recycling at the school; fundraising for the purchase of bike racks to encourage students to use a cleaner mode of transport to get to school; the sale of "Glebe" water bottles to encourage students to reuse beverage containers; our "Green Staff Member of the Month", who is honoured for his/her efforts in helping to preserve a green environment; and a Pop Tabs Collection to help Clifford Bowey School raise money for the purchase of two large "pogon" strollers for their physically handicapped students.

TWIGS members also learned a lot about how other neighbourhood merchants were helping the environment, and picked up several tips and ideas for future initiatives.

Ms. A. Bolotenko
TWIGS Lead Teacher