HSIE and Design & Technology Teacher | Coordinator of High School Sustainability Programs | Tutor

We all wish to help keep Planet Earth beautiful, sustainable and healthy but sometimes we just don’t know what we can do to be part of the solution and many feel that their small actions won’t make a difference. Please consider that if a substantial portion of our school community makes small changes which could soon become fabulous habits we can make a difference and we would be teaching our children about actions they can take.

Here are a few ideas and reminders:

BYO bottle

Remember to send a reusable and labelled water bottle to school daily. There is no need to pollute our planet with single use plastic bottles. Let’s not forget all the carbon emissions produced just from manufacturing each bottle we discard.

Plastic Free July-Trash talk!

Switching away from plastic garbage bin liners is a popular choice for households looking to reduce plastic waste. With a bit of forward thinking this small step can make a big difference.

Here are some great alternatives to plastic bin liners and bags:

• Lining the bin with a few sheets of newspaper, flyers or scrap paper.
• Using the bin as a ‘naked bin’, and simply washing it out as needed
• If you do use a ‘naked bin’, you can ward against extra smells by wrapping the “icky” stuff in newspaper/scrap paper first.
• Freezing ‘wet’ scraps (in paper or a reusable container) until bin day.
• Home composting food scraps.

Find out more small steps on this website.

RecycleSmart

Did you know that it’s so simple to book a pick-up of many recyclable items from home through RecycleSmart?Visit this website for more information and to book a pick-up.

Re-collect

Be part of Emanuel School’s Re-collect initiative – it’s so simple!

Remember: there is an opportunity to use the Re-Collect App to have your recyclable bottles and cans collected at your convenience. The proceeds of this are donated to Our Big Kitchen. A big thanks to those families which have contributed already! I booked a pick up during the term break and it could not have been easier!

Please email lstarkey@emanuelschool.nsw.edu.au if you would like simple instructions on how to book a collection with Emanuel School as the organisation. To date we have made a great difference saving an impressive 800 cans/bottles from landfill and we would love more families to participate.

Refill and save

Have you considered purchasing refillable products for some bathroom and cleaning products? Not only will you be helping the environment by reducing plastic waste going to landfill but you will also be saving money!