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For my capstone project, I partenered with Isabella D'amato and Isabella Roth. We continued to work on a project we started in the spring of our junior year called Sustainable Growth For The Future (SGFTF). We all chose to work together becuase we share the same two fundemental beliefs, education is a powerful tool in creating change and the younger generations are the generations of change makers.
For our capstone, the three of us went to Placentino Elementary School and taught a lesson about sustainability followed by an activity where each student in the class was able to create their own "compost started kit" they were able to take home.
The main focus of our lesson was how to be sustainable with food. We started off our lesson by explaining what is considered sustainable food and followed that by talking about food waste and why it is detrimental to our environment. We used our lesson to explain to them how food waste is created and then shared with them simple steps they can take to reduce the amount of food that goes to waste. Some simple sustainable actions we shared with the students were composting, gardening/ growing their own food, shopping at local markets, buying food that comes in sustainable packaging and reducing meat consumption.
UN Sustainable Development Goals
Goal number 11 is focused on making cities inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable. Through our project we helped to teach members of our community about how to be sustainable with food which helps to improve the overall sustainability of our town. I believe a sustainable town is a safe and resilient town which improves the quality of life of those living in Holliston.
Goal number 13, climate action, is also very relevent to the work we have done. The entire goal of our project is to encourage people to be mindful about what they are purchasing, who they are purchasing from and how they are disposing items in order to protect our climate.
Goal number 12, responsible consumption and production, is the goal that aligns the most with our project. The goal of our project was to teach others about how to consume sustainably. Although we specifically focused on food, we also touched on the importance of purchasing products in sustainable packaging and using reusable bags when groery shopping. We also used our project to emphasize the importance of shopping at local markets and local farms such as outpost which helps to encourage responsible production by helping our local farms flourish.
Lastly, goal 17. Goal 17 is one of the most important goals as it is the goal that will make meaningful change world-wide. One thing I have learned throughout my capstone project and my time in GCP is that togetherness and partnership is what is most important. Through our project we have worked with a wide age range. From 8 year olds to state representatives, principals and parents. We must all work together and teach others about the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals in order for any of the goals to be achieved.
Community Impact:
The class that I worked with for my capstone project also happened to be the class I was interning in. At the end of my internship a few weeks later the teacher of this class, Mrs Bergeron, had all of the students write a thank you note to me and tell me about their favorite things about having me in their classroom was. I was overwhelmed with how many of the kids wrote about how much they enjoyed my lesson about sustainability and the composting activity. Below are three examples of notes I recieved from the children. I was so excited when I read through them and to see how impactful the lesson was for the students in the class. I am excited to know that they have become interested in sustainability and composting, especially at such a young age. I am hopeful they will continue to compost and their families will continue to compost to work towards Holliston becoming a more sustainable town that is focused on sustainable consumption and production along with protecting our climate and helping to achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
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