Although we were online for most of January, the Eco Team continued working tirelessly to plan and implement various projects. On Monday, January 24th, students and their families were invited to turn off their devices and lights for at least an hour. The importance of conserving energy and using natural light as much as possible was encouraged not only on this day but every day. Fun and interesting facts were shared throughout the day. For example, “Did you know that when you turn off your lights for a bit and open your window in your workspace your skin better absorbs vitamin D?”

We kicked off the month with National Sweater Day on February 3rd. All members of the community were encouraged to wear a sweater in support of climate action. Since 2010, more than a million Canadians have shown their support by turning down their thermostats by the same amount (or more) and wearing their favourite sweaters to stay warm. The Eco Team brought National Sweater Day to Life by registering the event with the WWF, raising awareness about how climate change is impacting nature, asking students to make a pledge, and sharing on social media. Homerooms were encouraged to wear sweaters and House points were awarded to all and additional points were given to those who took this a step further and came dressed in themed sweaters.

This month, several members of the Eco Team took time to participate in the Bondar Challenge of the Roberta Bondar Foundation. The Bondar Challenge is an exciting challenging opportunity for students to learn about the art of photography and to discover new perspectives on nature through a camera lens.

Two initiatives, Meatless Mondays and the Great Gulp, took place over the the month of March. The Eco Team wants to raise awareness that what we eat has an impact on climate. Meat has a much higher carbon footprint than plant-based foods. Canada’s Food Guide recommends a diverse selection of foods and suggests choosing protein sources from plants as often as possible. Eating healthy plant-based foods instead of meat once a week can have a positive impact on the health and well-being of humans and the environment. For this reason, we teamed up with the school’s cafeteria which has pledged to provide healthy meatless options only on all Mondays in the month of March with a promise to continue this into the coming months at least once a week.

The Great Gulp Flex Block took place on March 9th. The Eco Team prepared a slideshow to discuss the importance of participating in this initiative. Students had the chance to synchronously drink water out of a reusable water bottle, watch a video about the life of a plastic bottle, have a discussion, share water facts and make pledges on a jamboard and play an Eco game of Blooket.