Green Team
Canberra High School has a range of schoolwide action teams that encourage student involvement in initiating community changes. One of the Canberra High School action teams, the Green Team, is an environmentally friendly group who promote sustainable behaviour, waste-reducing programs and environmental education.
The Green Team was established in 2019, and over the course of a few years, they have been able to integrate new systems into the school. They researched, proposed and implemented a new bin system that includes a bin for 10c cans, comingled recycling, and landfill waste. To encourage student engagement in this new bin system, the Green team also assembled a house challenge. They have introduced four bins, each corresponding to a house group, where points are awarded for each 10c bottle or can deposited. These bottles and cans are then deposited in the Return and Earn container deposit scheme, where all the funds raised go towards the Year 10 formal. This idea, to boost student engagement was a success, with over $4,000 raised! You can read more about this bin system in Hercanberra, where it was featured!
Green Team also plays a vital role in the promotion of sustainable schoolwide events. This year Canberra High School participated in a Plastic-free Picnic, a campaign run by Plastic Oceans Australasia. This educational event helped Year 7 students think about what foods and packaging they are bringing to school, and how they can assess their own waste management to make improvements. Alongside this event, the Green Team was also in charge of Clean Up Schools Day. Students from each year group were encouraged to spend some time in the playground to clean up the school and identify where the largest sources of waste were. After this event was complete, the Green Team completed a waste audit to analyse what waste was most frequently found, and what they can do to further improve Canberra High School’s waste management.
Plastic free Picnic in 2022
Meeting Place: Main Staffroom
Day and Time: Wednesdays Lunch times
Cost: Free
Clean Up Schools Day - The Green Team runs this event each year
How does this activity promote student voice at CHS
Students are one of the main contributors to encourage sustainable practices surrounding the green team. The students share ideas on how the school can be better and more green!
In the News
Click on the photo to read the article in Her Canberra about the recycling initiative at Canberra High.