Connecting to our Earth on Earth Day: Trash and Mindful Consumption
April 22, 2021
Noticing the amount of trash on the ground at the Farm our Nursery students decided to do something about it! For weeks they collected trash, sorted it, counted it, and compared it, and recently presented their findings to our 6th graders with the hopes of inspiring others to work together to keep the Farm free from trash.
Nursery reminds us to “pick up your trash!”
Earth Day and our Plastic Problems
By: Bob Schmidt, Upper School Science Teacher
Environmental science students were treated to a presentation on the History and Problem with Plastics by Wheeler Hamilton parent Rebecca Altman, P’26. Presenting from her perch as a writer and environmental sociologist (some might call her a plasticologist!), Dr. Altman chronicled the history of plastic manufacturing through the ages leading to our present-day plastics dilemma. She highlighted a pivotal point in the history of plastics and waste in general. That turning point was when we became a throw-away society, and companies ultimately ramped up a “design for the dump” mentality. Her advice to combat this philosophy is to consider our consumption and the materials used to transport and package items. Reduce where we can, with the understanding that source reduction in the initial design and manufacturing stages is most crucial to decreasing future materials added to the waste stream. As we turn our attention to another Earth Day, we can help conservation efforts by reflecting on our consumption and heeding her advice to reduce whenever and wherever possible! Check out #breakfree from plastic for more!
