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Back to School with the Green Schools Challenge 2011-12!
On September 29, 2011, Dream in Green kicks off the sixth year of its largest environmental education program, the Green Schools Challenge, with a professional development workshop for K-12 teachers, administrators and maintenance staff.
This year, the annual event brings together 155 schools dedicated to advancing resource conservation, waste prevention and lowered carbon emissions through student-led green initiatives at school and at home.
The all-day workshop provides teachers with the training and materials they need to create school Green Teams, conduct school-wide energy surveys and develop action plans for reducing energy waste. This year’s workshop will be held from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm at Miami Jackson Senior High School, 1751 NW 36th Street, Miami, FL 33142. On-site registration begins at 7:30 am. The workshop provides MDCPS teachers with eight professional development credits if teachers register through the MDCPS professional development portal. All GSC materials are FL-SSS/Next Generation-aligned and offer teachers great new ways to engage students in activities that foster academic success and community leadership.
Schools can register for the Green Schools Challenge by calling Dream in Green at 305-576-3500 or emailing Lesmarie or Download the Application (Closes September 23rd!)
Green Schools Challenge a Finalist in Inktel Direct Grant
As an Inktel Direct grant finalist, the Green Schools Challenge posted their innovative idea, ‘100 Green Tags in 100 Hours,’ on youtube August 26, 2011. The video explains the Innovative Idea which is to get FIU college students to submit 100 green tags, or slogans, in 100 hours. The three students submitting the best tags will receive book scholarships. Then the tags will be shared with K-12 students by FIU Honors students working in classrooms, who will work with K-12 students to film PSA’s (public service announcements) in association with WLRN public television and the Big Blue & You Foundation. The PSA’s will focus on resource conservation and waste reduction and will be shown on WLRN and also distributed to K-12 schools. One of the purposes of the Inktel Direct grant video is to show how social media can take an idea viral. The Inktel judges will be taking into account how many youtube ‘views’ the Green Schools Challenge video gets, so Dream in Green is asking all supporters to view the video on youtube, ‘like’ it and leave a comment. Winners will be announced at the end of September.
Dream in Green and Miami-Dade County Public Schools honor 105 GSC Schools!
On Wednesday, May 18, 2011, Dream in Green honored one hundred and two Miami-Dade and three Broward County elementary, middle and senior high schools that participated in the 2010/11 Green Schools Challenge (GSC) . The Green Schools Challenge was developed to foster sustainable behaviors in students, teachers, parents and staff by engaging them in saving energy, conserving water, recycling and waste prevention activities at school and at home.
Over 150 teachers and guests gathered to honor each of the Green Schools Challenge participating schools. Each school was awarded its own “Greenometer™,” which displays each school’s overall reduction in greenhouse gas emissions for the 2010/11 school year. Dream in Green also presented cash prizes to the top ten energy-reducing schools. This year’s 1st pace winner was Homestead Middle School, in second place Paul W. Bell Middle School and in 3rd place was St. Stephen’s Episcopal Day School.
Members of the Miami-Dade County Public School District (MDCPS) turned out to honor the GSC teachers and to show their support of Dream in Green. In attendance were MDCPS Superintendent Alberto Carvalho, and School Board Members: Dr. Lawrence S. Feldman, Dr. Wilbert “Tee” Holloway and Dr. Martin S. Karp. In his speech, Superintendent Alberto Carvalho enthusiastically praised the teachers for their hard work and commitment and stated that he would like to see the Green Schools Challenge program go district-wide in 5 years. Dream in Green’s staff worked closely with MDCPS’s Chief Facilities Officer, Jaime Torrens, the District’s Eco-Sustainability Officer, Ana Rijo-Conde, and Administrative Director, Victor Alonso, who also attended and acknowledged teachers for their dedication to the District’s Eco-Sustainability initiatives. Miami Dade County Public Schools provided on-going and active support for GSC teachers and administrators in their efforts to decrease each school’s respective carbon footprint.
Dream in Green Board member, Carlos Canino, hosted the awards ceremony, which was held at the law offices of Stearns Weaver Miller Weissler Alhadeff & Sitterson, P.A. in downtown Miami.
Dream in Green Celebrates 5th Anniversary
Dream in Green hosted their 5th annual event, ‘Living the Dream’, on April 1, 2011 at the beautiful Palms Hotel & Spa on Miami Beach. Over 200 guests gathered to raise funds for Dream in Green’s Green Schools Challenge program and to recognize the winners of the 2011 Green Innovator Awards. The Green Innovator Awards recognize exemplary innovation and leadership in sustainability, environmental stewardship and corporate citizenship. Recipients of the 2011 Awards were Miami-Dade County’s Office of Sustainability, the Heat Group, Assurant and DECOBIKE. The Award Ceremony was emceed by Miami Beach WPLG weathercaster, Trent Aric, who won an Emmy for his riveting climate change reporting. Miami Beach ’green’ Commissioner, Jerry Libbin, also attended the event and presented Dream in Green with a Proclamation from the City of Miami Beach, signed by Mayor Mattie Bower and Vice-Mayor Commissioner Michael Gongora, acknowledging Dream in Green’s contribution to the city. Miss Earth Florida, Kelly Saks, was also present, helping guests hang their ‘green dreams’ on ribbons in the Palms bamboo grove.
The event marked the 5th Anniversary of the Green Schools Challenge, now in over 100 schools in Miami-Dade and Broward Counties. The Green Schools Challenge fosters sustainable behaviors in K-12 students by engaging them in saving energy & water, recycling and waste prevention activities at school and at home.
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