Sustainability Committee Keep the Green Wheels Turning

January 18th 2024

Over 20 enthusiastic representatives filed into the Lower School flexi space on Wednesday night for the Sustainability committee meeting. With representation across the pupil body, School Council, the Eco Committee, School Operations, Senior Leadership, Junior School, Alumni, Marketing and more, there was a strong mix of voices, expertise and passion in the room.

The first discussion point for the evening was the Earthshot Prize, with the student winners and runners up presenting their projects to the floor, before initiating conversation on how we might enable and enact on their ideas. The Earthshot Prize empowers students to take initiative and leadership, to formulate and present ideas on how to create change and make the world a better, more sustainable place. The query for the room was, once someone has a great idea, how do they implement it?

It was decided that the Earthshot Prize winning project, 'Honestly Green’ by Reuben and Gabriel (a framework for getting the most out of pledges and initiatives), would be implemented across future key eco-projects. Parallel to this, it was agreed that more effort would be placed on disseminating data reporting, to ensure our efforts are communicated (and celebrated) more effectively.

Stemming from Melody and Isabella’s runner up ‘Save the Bees’ Earthshot Prize, a ‘Bee Happy’ project was floated with the group, with ideas on how to protect the health of local bees discussed, including how we might make the site more bee friendly. As our wonderful Eco Committee already engages with bee-related initiatives, they were enthusiastic in offering a helping hand to support ‘Save the Bees’.

Here, Mr. Collins-Down mentioned the incoming A-line - a single path that will wind around the entire site, connecting the spaces between the buildings, around them and through the site. This path will be completely edged in a biodiverse green way, with the proposed meadow-like environment offering the perfect place for bees to buzz through.

Next up, the group delved into Caetlinn and Theo's ‘Revive our Ponds’ idea, considering how we might improve the biodiversity of the school ponds. A member of Alleyn’s Fish Tank Club voiced their interest in working on this project, with a specific interest in extending the size of the school ponds to accommodate more fish. Watch this space, or pond, shall we say.

The next agenda item was debriefing on and critiquing our efforts during Eco Week 2023. Ideas were discussed for how we can elevate our Eco Week efforts to mobilise more action within the pupil body, schoolwide. Ideas included intra-school collaboration, weaving sustainability into the curriculum, and introducing more creative workshops (which were identified to be a hit last Eco Week).

Wrapping up the meeting, our dedicated catering lead, Mr. Lubrano presented on new implementations across the Food and Beverage space, including the transition to new crisps packaging (dual benefits of being made from recycled material AND being more recyclable), changing to napkins made from recycled material, a shift to brown paper bags for school baguette sandwiches, and the movement of our (already very limited) single use cups to certified recyclable, plastic-free and compostable cups.

It was a productive and enjoyable meeting, and a valuable opportunity for staff to connect with pupils, to hear their voices and needs, and to collaborate on creating positive change for our future together.

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