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EarthCARE Newsletter

Summer 2004

Summer's almost here and what a fabulous first year it has been for EarthCARE! We're excited to tell you about how successful it has been. In this issue of the EarthCARE Newsletter:

Ottawa-Carleton District School Board is leading the nation with EarthCARE through Ameresco's Better Schools Partnership® (BSP)

This year EarthCARE activities such as Lights off/Computers off and Litterless Lunch have contributed to:

  • $3 million in annual energy savings ($1 million from EarthCARE alone, $2 million from BSP school facility retrofits)
  • 8.8 tonnes (32%) reduction in CO2 emissions (surpassing our 25% objective)
  • $57 million dollars created in school renewal for safer, more comfortable and reliable work and learning environments
  • More on results
  • See our Work in Progress Newsletter - featuring: Program goals, strategies, results, the partnership and stakeholder support

"There aren't many opportunities that come along that provide such substantial and immediate results. It's a win-win for all - students, staff and broader school communities," - Lorne Rachlis, Director of Education, OCDSB

EarthCARE In the News

EarthCARE catches Dr. David Suzuki's attention as Suzuki congratulates the winning entries from the EarthCARE Fair consisting of three-dimensional globes, conservation posters, and innovation presentations.

Also in the news, EarthCARE lead teacher Kelly Lee, and students Lynne Bosquet and Katherine Lapointe were recently interviewed on Ottawa's The New RO TV station.

Two new things for you to check out on our site:

  1. Director's Corner - a regular feature written by EarthCARE Executive Director Rose-Marie Batley encouraging us to think globally and act locally. The focus will be on discussing connections between environmental issues faced by EarthCARE students in their community and those faced by all of us on a world scale.
  2. Discussion Forum- an open forum for anything you have to say on EarthCARE, conservation, and the environment. Sign-up is free and easy, just fill out the registration form and you'll be sent an email confirming your registration. Once you receive this email simply click on the confirmation link and you'll be ready to go. If you have any questions please contact web@earthcarecanada.com.

Please visit us at www.earthcarecanada.com all summer as you prepare for the fall. We will be posting important dates for various districts as well as other key information about EarthCARE. Have a safe and wonderful summer!

EarthCARE in Action - Getting Results

EarthCARE was launched in the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board in October 2003 with the goal to make environmental awareness and action a part of the culture of the district. Schools created EarthCARE Teams consisting of teachers, students, custodians, principals and parents.

  • 90% of the 144 schools in the system participated in EarthCARE.
  • 1500 students and more than 250 staff were actively promoting EarthCARE action and awareness.
  • Over 100 secondary students were trained to be EarthCARE catalysts, students who reached out to the elementary schools in their communities to help them launch EarthCARE activities in their schools.

Saving Money, Reducing Emissions -
Making a Difference!

  • Students and staff avoided utility costs of $1 million this year by turning off lights and computers when not in use and reducing water consumption and waste.
  • They reduced the cross-contamination in their recycling bins by 13% overall for the year. In the month of March they achieved an all time low of less than 9% contamination on 81 tonnes collected.
  • They avoided the production of 8.8 tonnes of CO2 emissions (292 mature trees would need to be planted to recover from this).
  • Students, staff and custodians built partnerships that enabled them to work together to significantly impact their school and home environments.
  • Students enjoyed leadership opportunities through EarthCARE - the Merivale HS EarthCARE team organized the EarthCARE Fair; team members organized and staged the launch of EarthCARE in October; students made EarthCARE presentations to trustees, principals and senior staff; several catalysts and team members were interviewed for radio, television and print media.
  • Building operators were trained in new and existing systems so that their buildings were more efficient and effectively managed.

You can make a difference in your school, your district, and your community.

Actions Speak Louder Than Words

  • Schools Activities - LOCO (lights off/computers off), garbage-free lunches, battery and cell phone recycling, environmental awareness campaigns, skits and assemblies, butterfly garden, composting, "paper revolutions" (paper and Bristol board are recycled to use both sides for posters, tests, assignments, etc.).
  • Audits - 74% of the schools completed audits on water, waste and energy use at their sites.
  • Action-oriented lessons (K-12) on the environment - available to all teachers in the district.
  • Community Activities - pond clean-up, tree planting.
  • EarthCARE Fair - featuring 3-D globes, environmental innovation, poster competitions and guest speaker David Suzuki.
  • Furniture Repair and Recycling - the winning elementary school environmental innovation project at the EarthCARE Fair, April 20th, 2004.

What makes EarthCARE work?

  • The support and encouragement of the administration and teaching staff.
  • The assistance provided by EarthCARE Catalysts from the secondary panel.
  • More than one teacher on the EarthCARE Team and a core group of students working together to distribute the environmental messages and maintain interest.
  • A partnership with the building operator who is an EarthCARE Team member.
  • Brief, but regular, meetings of the EarthCARE Team.
  • The expectation of the Director that EarthCARE actions will occur.