School News You Can Use – February, 2017

www.forestwander.com

THINK SPRING!

 INSIDE THIS ISSUE

• CLUB Conference News – Call for Award Nominations
  
• CLUB News – NRRA Compost Bin Sale
  
• Grant & SWIP News – Introducing 3R’s of the Common Core and Teaching Toxics Resources
  
• In The News – Super Bowl of Recycling; Kitchen of the Future?
• Contests, Scholarships & Fundraisers – Great American Can Roundup
  
• EPA & NHDES News – NH DES Composting Brochure
  
• Activity – Smart Phone Stands
  

Click HERE to view PDF

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CONFERENCE NEWS

Save The Date for the School CLUB Conference!

Please Join Us for the 8th Annual School Recycling Conference:

Our theme:       Back to the Future for Recycling..It’s Time

Our date:           Tuesday, May 23, 2017

Our location:   The Radisson in Manchester, NH

Mark your calendars for this important recycling event and expo! Be prepared for activities, workshops, games, exhibits and a lot of FUN!

Remember, NH schools may apply for Conference Registration Grants through NH the Beautiful!

Click HERE to go to our 2017 Conference Page!

WANTED:  Your Award Nominations for the 8th Annual School Recycling Conference

This year’s Conference theme is Back to the Future for Recycling..It’s Time.

Does your school have an individual, program or event that deserves special recognition for outstanding work in recycling?  Above are just some of the award categories to be considered.  Choose one of the above, or come up with your own category.

Winners will be announced and recognized at our Conference Awards Luncheon on May 23.

Please follow this link to the School Award Nomination Form.  Deadline for nominations is March 17, 2017.

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CLUB NEWS

Calling All Schools . . .

Milford Middle School Seeks Honest Kids Pouch Brigade

We received the following request from our friends at Milford Middle School in NH:

They have been collecting Capri Sun drink pouches for years through the Terracycle brigade.  Unfortunately, that program was discontinued on 12/31/16.

Honest Kids has a pouch brigade but there is a waiting list.  Are there any schools in the New England area that are already signed up with the Honest Kids program that would be willing to take Milford’s collection until they can get on the Honest Kids program?

Please contact [email protected] if you can help!!

Many thanks for helping out and keeping their pouch recycling program going!

Update from Allie – Plastic Film 12-30-16

On Tuesday (12/27/16) we bagged up all of the plastic film that had been dropped off at the transfer station so far, weighed it, and brought it to a local Hannaford supermarket where it will be picked up by Trex to be recycled. We dropped off 94 pounds of plastic film! It  barely fit in our car. The picture I attached was taken with the back seats pushed down and the plastic film pushed all the way up to the backs of the front seats. The people at Hannaford were very helpful, and drop off went smoothly. So far, I am very happy with how everything is going!

Happy New Year!

All the best, Allie at deepgreenblog.com

NRRA’s 2017 BACKYARD COMPOSTING SALE!!!

Our Annual Backyard Composting Sale is Back, Please help us make it bigger and better than ever!!  If we want this sale to continue each year…we need your help and participation!!  If you wish to participate in this year’s sale PLEASE send in your Participation Form no later than February 20th!   

OVERVIEW/DETAILS

NRRA is pleased to offer its annual compost bin sale once again. As in the past, you can offer these for sale to your residents or other folks at your cost, or you can use this as a fundraiser. NRRA will still assist groups with providing promotional poster and order form templates.

Due to transportation/logistics, all orders must be made in full pallets. (see participation packet for pallet sizes). All pallets will be direct shipped to their final destination, and all pricing will include shipping. If you are unable to commit to ordering full pallets, we encourage you to work with another group or town in your area and share the order.

We will collect orders through Friday, March 24, 2017. All payments collected by you should be made out to your group. Final payment to NRRA should be made in one check from your group to NRRA.

It is your choice whether you sell these at cost or use this even as a fundraiser. Even if you are selling at the fundraiser prices, pricing for all items is still well below retail costs. So unlike other fundraisers, you are offering a great value for the dollar.

Items you can buy…..

#1 SELLING COMPOST BIN!

• Converts grass, leaves and table scraps into an abundant supply of rich garden soil
• Large 80 gallon capacity
• Reduce the amount of garbage you generate by 25% or more
• Easy, snap together assembly
• 10 year warranty
• Made from recycled plastic
• Twist locking pest-resistant lid
• Free Instruction Manual with each Bin purchase
• Assembled dimensions – 33″x35″

SYSTERN RAIN BARREL 

• Saves water & cuts household sewage treatment
• Can cut water bills up to 40%
• Excellent water source for lawns & indoor/outdoor plants
• Free from chlorine & other water treatment chemicals
• Large 55 gallon capacity
• Made from High Density Poly-Ethylene with up to 50% recycledplastic
• Tan color blends into landscape
• Mosquito mesh keeps out bugs and leaves
• Easily attaches to your existing downspout system & has overflow capability to another Systern or to ground run-off
• Accessories included

KITCHEN SCRAP PAILS!!!

• Attractive & easy to use
• Hinged lid snaps securely to pail
• White & beige color
• 2 gallon capacity
• Pail width easily accommodates the shape of plates for “mess free” scraping!

COMPOST TURNER

• Turns compost without resorting to the traditional back-breaking job of removing & reloading by shovel
• Simply plunge the Compost Turner into the compost pile; as it is withdrawn, the heavy-duty blades open to aerate & turn the compost
• Sturdy, professional quality

For more information contact us at [email protected] or 603.736.4401 ext. 10 or to sign up fill out the Participation Packet (click here)

To Download the Final Group Order Form, Click HERE

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GRANT & SWIP NEWS

Introducing our New Curricula . . .

Classic K-12 Recycling Activities with 21^st Century Standards

NRRA’s School CLUB is pleased to announce that the newest editions of their school curricula 3R’s of the Common Core: A Teacher’s Resource Guide to Solid Waste and Recycling and Teaching Toxics: Creating Solutions to Household Pollution are ready for distribution! The former Association of Vermont Recyclers (AVR), a leader in Vermont recycling education programs, originally created these publications 25 years ago. In 2012, the CLUB assumed ownership of AVR’s school resources and materials. Last year, NRRA received funding from a USDA Rural Development grant program to update this outstanding curriculum.  It now aligns with the national common core standards and is non-state specific. The intent was to correlate the standards to the lesson plans as originally written. This proved to be an incorrect assumption. Most of the lessons were revised and the Information and Resources sections upgraded, but the authors upheld the original concepts and objectives.

Everyone who participated in the teacher trainings held during the production of the new editions will be receiving their training packets (CLUB classroom workshop modules including TT and the 3R’s) very soon. We thank you for your patience and participation in helping us develop NRRA’s Train the Teachers program. Anyone else interested in this program and receiving Teaching Toxics: Creating Solutions to Household Pollution and the 3R’s of the Common Core: A Teacher’s Resource Guide to Solid Waste and Recycling, please contact NRRA Programs Coordinator, Gwen Erley, at [email protected].

Rutland County SWAC SWIP Outreach Begins

Free Star Assessments for Schools

Vermont – NRRA’s School Recycling CLUB is pleased to announce that we have begun our school outreach efforts on behalf of the Rutland County Solid Waste Alliance Communities (RCSWAC). The goal is to assist with Act 148, Universal Recycling compliance.

Member towns include:  Benson, Chittendon, Fair Haven, Middletown Springs, Pawlet, Rutland Town, Shrewsbury, Sudbury, Tinmouth and West Haven.

School outreach will consist of a Star Assessment and School Recycling Scorecard. There is no cost to the schools.

We are scheduling appointments for the first six schools for a one hour walk through on March 1 and 2.  To get on the schedule, please contact The CLUB at [email protected].

White River Alliance Solid Waste District SWIP Work Continues

Free School Workshops and Technical Assistance

Vermont – We continue to provide workshops to schools in the White River Alliance Solid Waste District in Eastern/Central, VT.

Alliance communities include:  Barnard, Bethel, Granville, Hancock, Pittsfield, Rochester, Royalton and Stockbridge.

School outreach consists of four workshops and two technical assistance trainings. These are being paid by the Alliance so there is no cost to the schools.

Would you like to host a TOLD, Garbage Guerrillas or another Workshop at your school? Let the CLUB Help!

• Improves academic performance, especially in science and math
• Can lead to financial savings for schools
• Decreases the school’s carbon footprint through practical solutions that reduce energy and water consumption
• Reduces school waste and conserves natural resources
• Encourages student environmental awareness and stewardship
• Increases parental involvement
• Helps students and teachers develop stronger relationships with their communities

School CLUB set up for TOLD event

Previous EPA EE-funded research at over 200 New England schools completed by the NRRA School Recycling CLUB (the CLUB) found that the single most challenging area for school recycling programs was in providing curriculum integrations that brought recycling and sustainability into classrooms to be used as the subject matter for meeting state and local curriculum standards.  The intention of the CLUB programs is to address just that issue in schools across all six New England states. Our goal is to use the CLUB’s workshops and technical assistance programs, all experiential and hands on, as a tool for educating K-12 students about consumption, proper diversion of waste, the resulting impacts on climate change and what they can do to change it.  Through these offerings, we are also afforded the opportunity to link these priorities to curriculum standards.  In addition, these workshops will model, for educators or community leaders, exemplary ways of teaching in creative, effective, and efficient methods about human health threats from environmental pollution as well as how to minimize human exposure to preserve good health. Click here to learn more or contact us at [email protected] or call 1.603.736.4401 ext. 19

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IN THE NEWS

Super Bowl of Recycling!

From our Friends at Waste360 Daily Wire

A Play-By-Play of Super Bowl LI’s Waste Diversion Efforts

By Mallory Szczepanski

Courtesy of Waste360

Millions of sports fans (and entertainment fans) tuned in to watch Super Bowl LI yesterday, which concluded with the New England Patriots victory over the Atlanta Falcons in a first-ever Super Bowl overtime. And while those fans were busy munching on tasty snacks, drinking refreshing beverages, cheering on their team and catching up with friends and family, the NFL and the staff at NRG Stadium in Houston were working to divert as much waste from landfill as possible.

FULL ARTICLE

Super Bowl Recycled Music Too!

We were so proud to see that Goffstown, NH’s Recycled Percussion was asked to perform at the Super Bowl festivities!

From Recycled Percussion’s Facebook page: This picture was from last year in Houston when we performed halftime. Tom was a little busy last night (Feb. 5) being incredible. (Courtesy)

To read more on Recycled Percussion and their Super Bowl experience, click HERE to go to their Facebook page!

A Sneak Peek at your Future Kitchen?

From our friends at Waste360

Whirlpool Debuts New Zera Food Recycler on Indiegogo

This product converts a week’s worth of food waste into ready-to-use homemade fertilizer within 24 hours.

Waste360 Staff | Jan 09, 2017

Whirlpool Corp. announced the release of the Zera Food Recycler, a kitchen appliance that turns food waste into fertilizer. The Zera system debuted at the Consumer Electronics Show and is available for pre-orders on Indiegogo

Zera Food Recycler can break down one week’s worth of the average U.S. family’s food waste within 24 hours by using a combination of oxygen, moisture, heat and mixing to expedite the decomposition process.  Unlike traditional composting methods, families are able to use the Zera system year-round regardless of the weather and can remotely operate the appliance through the Whirlpool mobile app.

^{For the whole story, click HERE  or go to www.zera.com}

The Amazing Recycling Kid!

From our Friends at Waste360

Ryan collects and sorts plastic, glass and tin items before taking them over to Ryan’s Recycling, his recycling center. Photo courtesy of OneGreenPlanet.org

Seven-Year-Old Launches Recycling Company to Reduce Ocean Waste

Waste360 Staff | Dec 21, 2016

After visiting a recycling center in Orange County, Calif., at the age of three, Ryan decided that he wanted to run his own recycling center. Now, at age 7, Ryan is doing just that.

Ryan collects and sorts plastic, glass and tin items before taking them over to Ryan’s Recycling, his recycling center. In addition to running his recycling center, Ryan is a youth ambassador for the Pacific Marine Mammal Center in Laguna Beach.

One Green Planet has more details:

CLUB Update:

Ryan Hickman has his own website:  http://ryansrecycling.com/about/ and was a guest on “Ellen” on 1/30/17, having raised $10,000 for college! You can access that video at :  http://ryansrecycling.com/blog/

From our friends at NWF

TEACHERS, HELP US SPREAD THE WORD!

Calling all high school students! It’s never too early or too late to begin planning your next journey in sustainability after you graduate from high school. The best jobs for the 21st century will be in the green economy, and the National Wildlife Federation’s EcoLeaders program is positioned to prepare the future sustainability workforce in collaboration with colleges and universities across the U.S. In order to prepare students for a rapidly shifting economies, colleges will need to ramp up sustainability education across all disciplines. Students and faculty need to understand local and regional job demands, professional credentials, and how to enhance students’ preparedness inside and outside the classroom.

NWF’s EcoCareer Conference 2017 is designed to help. We will open the gates to our large array of leadership and career development resources for sustainability.

Please join us for this two-day virtual event on February 22 and 23, 2017 to hear from leading experts and learn more about:

• Finding well paid jobs in the clean economy
• Developing effective career plans
• Identifying top degree programs and project learning credentials
• Exploring online sustainability career skill resources
• Learning bout resources to enhance academic offerings across all disciplines
• Interacting with others across fields interested in leading for a clean economy

Find out more and register today—Registration is complimentary for registered EcoLeaders and group discounts are available. Don’t miss this early registration offer to build your pathway to a sustainable career!

From our friends at Waste Advantage Magazine

SWANA Offers Free Student Membership in 2017

The Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) is pleased to announce that it now offers free membership for full-time undergraduate and graduate college students as a means to grow the future of the solid waste and recycling industry. Beginning in 2017, eligible students now have a no-cost opportunity to engage with a network of more than 8,500 professionals to learn more about the solid waste and recycling industry, to interact with potential employers, and to connect with peers who have similar study and career interests. “By providing college students free membership in SWANA, they will have a transparent view of the industry they are studying and may, one day, pursue a career in,” stated Darryl Walter, SWANA’s Director of Membership.”

Read full story

Park Recycling Bin Grant Program

The Dr Pepper Snapple / Keep America Beautiful Park Recycling Bin Grant program is designed to build or expand recycling opportunities in park settings such as urban parks, neighborhood parks with playgrounds, athletic fields, regional and state parks, public beaches and developed public water front areas such as board walks. The program provides recycling bins to local communities through grants awarded annually.   Learn more

Applications for 2017 grants are being accepted through February 24.

Download media release announcing 2017 grant opportunity.

Keep America Beautiful

1030 15th Street, NW, Suite 600 East Washington, D.C. 20005

Contact

Alec Cooley
843.278.7686 | [email protected]

From our friends at ecomaine

ecomaine Announces Twelve 2017 School Recycling Grant recipients

Contact: Lisa Wolff, Communications Manager
[email protected]   207-523-3018

PORTLAND, Maine – January 13, 2017 – ecomaine, based here, is pleased to announce the recipients of its 2017 School Recycling Grants. Schools operating within ecomaine’s 58 member communities were invited to submit grant requests for up to $5,000 for waste reduction initiatives. At this time, the ecomaine Recycling Committee has decided to award twelve Maine schools with funds or goods valued at a total of $16,265.35.

“We are very pleased by the creative and ambitious programs this year’s grant recipients have planned to reduce, reuse and recycle more of the waste in their schools,” said Caleb Hemphill, chairman of ecomaine’s Recycling Committee. “We look forward to following the results of these efforts in the months ahead.”

Below is a summary of grant recipients, who were chosen based on the following criteria: (1) project outline and school commitment (2) ease of project replication (3) likelihood of success and program sustainability, and (4) how compelling and worthy the funding is.

The 2017 ecomaine School Recycling grant winners are:

• Lake Region Middle School, Bridgton, Naples and Casco, is being awarded $900 to build a school grounds composting bin and to cover bussing costs to visit ecomaine’s facilities. Their goal is to develop integrated and exciting curriculum to instill waste-reduction practices.
• MSAD #51, Cumberland and North Yarmouth, is being awarded $4,560 to fund four locally made recycling, trash and food waste receptacles as well as eight second-hand food waste toters. The creative approach the school took to integrating single-sort recycling and food waste recycling was a collaborative effort.
• Falmouth Elementary is being awarded $769 for a water bottle filling station. As their recycling and food waste programs are already mature and effective, Falmouth is installing this station as a way to further reduce their impact on the earth by reducing dependence on single-use water bottles.
• Freeport Middle School is being awarded $700 to increase awareness of the “three Rs”: Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. A comprehensive recycling program will be implemented through school-wide education and a field trip to ecomaine’s recycling and waste-to-energy facilities.
• Sacopee Valley Middle School (serving Baldwin, Cornish, Hiram, Parsonfield and Porter) is being awarded $261.46 for the purchase of gloves to sort recycling from trash and to cover bussing costs for a field trip to ecomaine’s recycling and waste-to-energy facilities. Here, they will make a movie about the recycling and waste-to-energy operations to bring back to their classmates.
• Howard C. Reiche Community School of Portland is being awarded $576.09 for outdoor composting bin tools, in-class compost collection bins and to cover costs for a field trip to ecomaine. If the third-grade classroom composting pilot goes well, grades K-5 will get on board next year!
• Catherine Morrill Day Nursery of Portland is being awarded $1,320 for food waste reduction efforts. They will receive monthly pick-up of all kitchen, lunch and snack food waste in efforts to cut down on amount of food in their trash while educating parents of their students along the way.
• Thornton Academy in Saco is being awarded new sorting bins valued at up to $1,548.80. The school is confident that new, cohesive bins with ecomaine’s educational messages, will ensure students and staff will have a clearer road to increased recycling.
• South Portland High School is being awarded $820 to purchase TerraCycle boxes to recycle even more materials that are not suitable for the single-sort recycling process. Since South Portland High School already has a robust and successful recycling and composting system in place, TerraCycle is their next step closer toward zero waste.
• Massabesic High School in Waterboro is being awarded $810 for the purchase of materials to improve the ease and efficiency of recycling throughout the school. A trolley will assist students in collecting recycling from new large recycling bins. Recycling and composting is second nature for students, who have a well-established Zero Waste Club committed to recycling collections.
• Waterville Alternative School is being awarded $1,000 to purchase an indoor worm composting system and worms, outdoor composting bin materials, food waste collection cans and buckets, a moveable greenhouse and a light system for the greenhouse. The school has enthusiastic involvement from their Green Class. It is their goal to grow food for their students while learning how waste can be a valuable resource.
• Manchester Elementary School in Windham is being awarded $1,320 toward food waste reduction efforts, as well as new trash and recycling bins (valued up to $1,680). They will receive monthly pickup of all kitchen, lunch and snack food waste in efforts to cut down on the amount of food in their trash. Bins will assist in proper sorting of waste materials by students and staff.

We are so proud of our communities and schools in their efforts to follow the waste hierarchy by Reducing, Reusing, Recycling and Composting or Digesting food waste to reduce what goes to Waste-to-Energy or Landfills. Be on the lookout for the fiscal year 2018 School Recycling Grants application process in April 2017.

About ecomaine: ecomaine is a community-owned sustainable waste management operator of a single-sort recycling facility, waste-to-energy plant, and food waste recycling transfer point in Portland, serving 58 member communities and handling one-third of Maine’s waste and recyclables.

Here’s what the Green Team Schools of Massachusetts are up to:

Hello GREEN TEAM Teachers!

More than 50,000 students from 257 schools across Massachusetts are participating in THE GREEN TEAM so far this school year! See the Participating Schools list if you’d like to network with other teachers in your area.

You have not yet registered for THE GREEN TEAM 2015-2016 school year. (Registration does not carry over from one year to the next.) It’s not too late to register! Register now so you can submit a Teacher Response Form (TRF) reporting the environmental activities your students have been doing. Submit your TRF online or mail in the printable version by March 31 so your students can receive prizes to recognize their work.

For more news on The Green Team, link to their newsletter HERE, or check out their website HERE.

From our Friends at Upper Valley Lake Sunapee Regional Planning Commission

For more information on how to make your own, non-toxic cleaners, click HERE.

cliparts.co

Interested in green cleaning?  If you would like to host a workshop in your school, please consider The CLUB’s Healthy Home, Clean Waters Workshop or our Technical Assistance Training for facilities staff on Green Cleaning & Indoor Air Quality Evaluation & Review. 

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Contests, Scholarships & Fundraisers

 Great American Can  Roundup Update

(Nov. 15 to April 22)

Dear Great American Can Roundup School Recycling Champions,

As the Great American Can Roundup School Challenge celebrates its 7th year, the Can Manufacturers Institute looks forward to recognizing the top recycling per capita schools in each state and the District of Columbia with cash awards.  This is a CANtastic way to show your true green spirit.

Register today at http://www.canroundup.com/login/, if you have not already. Raise money for your school/activities, score for the planet and recycle your way to the GACR leader board. It is easy, fun and there is time. The School Challenge runs from America Recycles Day (Nov. 15) to Earth Day (April 22) for collecting aluminum cans. Take your cans to the recycling center and upload your receipts by April 28, 2017. Winners will be announced in May.

From our friends at the National Wildlife Federation

Photo courtesy of Kathrin Swoboda

National Wildlife’s 46th Annual Photo Contest

Continuing a long tradition of showcasing some of the world’s best nature photography, NWF’s 46th annual contest opened for entries on January 9, 2017. The deadline for entries is March 20, 2017.

Prizes: Experienced judges will select winners, awarding a grand prize of $5,000 and cash prizes to first- and second-place winners in each of seven categories. Winners will also be published either in print or online and receive other recognition.

Categories: Baby Animals, Backyard Habitats, Birds, Landscapes and Plants, Mammals, Other Wildlife, People in Nature.

Consider donating: Photographers retain ownership and rights to their images, though we encourage you to consider donating some of your images to the National Wildlife Federation to help us save the world’s treasured wildlife species and their habitats.

For the gallery of 2015 winners, go to:  http://www.nwf.org/PhotoContest/Contest-Details/2015-Winners.aspx

For Photo Contest Details:  http://photocontest.nwf.org/menu-home.aspx?comp_id=AA757BF0-9221-4B68-9453-A2242755951E

Please Note:  Entry Fee: Enter up to ten photos for $20.00. No limit to the total number of images. Your fee helps support NWF’s work to protect wildlife and wild places.

• Grand Prize: $5,000.00.
• First Place: $500.00 for the winner in each category.
• Second Place: $250.00 for the second place in each category.
• Honorable Mentions: Each will receive a National Wildlife Federation calendar.

From our Friends at Vermont.gov

VT Funding for Composting Supplies

Funding is now available for the purchase of supplies for composting for residents and schools.

Grant funding can be used towards the purchase of backyard compost bins and/or the cost of equipment and supplies for school composting systems.

Please see the RFP here: http://www.vermontbusinessregistry.com/BidPreview.aspx?BidID=19176

Applications are due:  February 16

Please direct any questions to John Fay at [email protected]

John Fay    Environmental Analyst   802-522-5771

Department of Environmental Conservation

1 National Life Dr, Davis 1, Montpelier, VT 05620-3704

The Paradigm Challenge was created by Project Paradigm, a private foundation, in collaboration with American Red Cross

$100,000 Challenge

What is the Paradigm Challenge?

The Paradigm Challenge is an annual competition that inspires youth to use STEM skills plus kindness, creativity, and collaboration to make a difference.  The 2016-17 Challenge aims to generate new ideas to reduce waste in homes, schools, communities, and around the world.

• Ages 4-18
• Ideas to Reduce Waste (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle)
• Deadline: May 1, 2017

Mini-Contests – up to $500 – Acts of Kindness

• Create a video, poem, story, drawing, photograph, or anything else that captures one of your acts of kindness.
• Upload your entry (or entries) to tell the world about your kindness. Then ask friends, family, and everyone else you know to vote for your entry. The entry and voting deadline for the current public voting contest is December 31, 2016.
• WIN! The 10 entries with the most votes will win cash prizes up to $500!

Public Voting Contests

Project Paradigm will host different public voting contests to help raise awareness about waste and to promote The Paradigm Challenge. Youth will create and submit a contest entry and ask friends and family to vote.  The 10 entries with the most votes will receive cash prizes up to $500.

Ambassadors:

• Three Ambassadors (along with a parent or guardian) will win a 4-day/3-night trip to Los Angeles to attend The Paradigm Challenge Prize Ceremony.
• Ambassadors will compete in three age divisions: Ages 4 to 8 Ages 9 to 13 ● Ages 14 to 18.
  The top Ambassador in each age division will win the trip to Los Angeles.
• The first 100 Ambassadors to earn at least 100 points will receive an official Challenge Ambassador t-shirt. All Ambassadors who collect at least 50 points will receive a Challenge Ambassador Certificate.

Educators:

Educator Teams can win grants up to $5,000

From our friends at EPA

New application period for PEYA program

Applications are now being accepted for the next round of the President’s Environmental Youth Award (http://go.usa.gov/3u7XB). Applications are due March 1, 2017.

The PEYA program promotes awareness of our nation’s natural resources and encourages positive community involvement, through recognizing outstanding environmental projects by K-12 youth. The award celebrates student leadership in protecting the environment and building a livable, sustainable global community. Recent award winning projects included activities such as:

• creating a new eco-friendly fertilizer;
• fighting deforestation;
• educating communities on the need to protect various animal species;
• restoring and conserving local habitats;
• promoting community gardening;
• promoting recycling and other waste reduction methods in schools and communities;
• banning polystyrene (Styrofoam);
• researching the impact of energy consumption methods;
• analyzing the impact of solar panel installation;
• inventing a new water pollution mitigation method;
• educating communities on water conservation; and
• analyzing storm water flow and flood risk.

From our friends at EPA

PEYA Teacher Awards

Teacher award applications now being accepted

Apply now for the Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators (http://go.usa.gov/xkgTS), which recognizes outstanding K-12 teachers who employ innovative approaches to environmental education and use the environment as a context for learning.

Award winners receive up to $2,500 to continue their professional development in environmental education. Additionally, the teacher’s local education agency will receive up to $2,500 to fund environmental educational activities and programs. Learn about the creative work of our previous award winners (http://go.usa.gov/xkgbT).

Applications are due March 1, 2017.

Other School Grant Opportunities

(Collected from NWF Eco-Schools Newsletter)
http://www.nwf.org/Eco-Schools-USA/Newsletter.aspx?s_email_id=20150819_ECO_ENG_Educators|#schoolyardhabitats

Courtesy of eschoolnews.com

DonorsChoose.org – Can list on site up to 4 months
http://www.donorschoose.org/about
Helps classrooms and students in need

DoSomething.org – DoSomething.org offers many ways to earn scholarship money.

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EPA & NHDES NEWS

From our friends at NH DES

NH DES Composting Brochure

Want to learn more about composting?  The New Hampshire Dept. of Environmental Services has produced a very concise brochure of the basics.

Click HERE to view the PDF.

EPA’s WasteWise encourages organizations and businesses to achieve sustainability in their practices and reduce select industrial wastes.  WasteWise is part of EPA’s sustainable materials management efforts, which promote the use and reuse of materials more productively over their entire lifecycles.

To learn more, go to WasteWise Fact Sheet.

 As part of EPA’s Food Recovery Challenge, organizations pledge to improve their sustainable food management practices and report their results. The FRC is part of EPA’s Sustainable Materials Management Program (SMM). SMM seeks to reduce the environmental impact of materials through their entire life cycle. This includes how they are extracted, manufactured, distributed, used, reused, recycled, and disposed.

To learn more, go to:  EPA FRC

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ACTIVITY

DIY Easy Smartphone Stand

Andrew @ ScrappyGeek.com Hometalker  Enfield, NH

This is a really simple smartphone project. As some of you know, I’m always working in the kitchen. I love to cook and bake and create recipes. This means I always have my smartphone in the kitchen.

Until recently, my phone used to be slung on the counter where ever there was space. This means it usually ends up getting covered in flour or some sort of sticky sauce — not anymore!

This DIY smartphone stand changed that – and the project only takes about 5 minutes from start to finish!

Time: 5 Minutes

Difficulty: Easy

What you’ll need:

• Cassette tape case (w/paper insert)
• Wrapping paper (or other decorative paper)
• Glue stick

Like I said, this project is so simple and easy and it will help keep your phone clean in the kitchen – what’s not to love about it?!

The first step is to grab an old cassette tape case – make sure it has the paper insert. If you don’t have one that you’re willing to sacrifice, hit the thrift shop, I grabbed a stack of old cassettes for like 10 cents each at our thrift store.
What color do you want your smartphone stand? It’s the holiday season and I’m doing a lot of holiday baking so I used holiday wrapping paper for mine!

For all of the instructions, click HERE.

We found this through our Friends at Pinterest

Recycled toilet paper rolls Easy DIY Phone Holder

For all the details, click HERE

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GREEN CALENDAR

03/22/17 – World Water Day – To plan your event,  visit www.unwater.org.

04/22/17 – Earth Day – To plan your event, see future newsletters and visit www.earthday.org.

04/28/17 – Arbor Day – To plan your event,  visit www.arborday.org.

04/29/17 – Discover Wild NH Day – Join staff of NH Fish & Game for a day of activities and family fun. For more information, go to: http://www.wildlife.state.nh.us/events/dwnh.html

05/06/17 – VT Green Up Day – For more information, visit:  http://www.greenupvermont.org/

05/22/17 – NRRA’s 36th Annual Recycling Conference & Expo Begins – For more information go to our Conference Page.

05/23/17 – School CLUB’s 8th Annual School Recycling Conference (the Conference within the Conference); Registration assistance available for NH schools through NH the Beautiful.

06/05/17 – World Environment Day – To plan your event,  visit www.unep.org.

06/08/16 – World Oceans Day – To plan your event,  visit www.worldoceansday.org.

Groundhog Result . . .

   6 more weeks of winter! Oh Well.

 Hope you all had a lovely Valentine’s Day!

Courtesy of greenlivingconsulting.wordpress.com

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WHAT IS YOUR SCHOOL CLUB UP TO? The NRRA School CLUB always loves to hear what its members and other schools are doing to recycle and help the environment so we can share it through our newsletter. There are so many different things being done, and you are our best source of information about what is working in your school. It can be a new program, a long-term project that’s been proven over time, a field trip, etc. Always feel free to contact me or submit something and you may see it in the next School News You Can Use! – Gwen Erley,  [email protected] 1-603-736-4401 Ext. 19