BPS Race to Recycle competition
This past spring, Boston Public Schools hosted its first annual BPS Race to Recycle competition, encouraging schools to kick their recycling into high gear and really demonstrate that their school is committed to recycling.
All BPS schools recycle single-stream, and many of them have outstanding recycling programs. But for three weeks, school recycling teams competing in the BPS Race to Recycle worked together to closely measure the total amount of waste collected at their school. Both the trash and recycling streams were carefully measured every day, which provides the information needed to calculate a school’s recycling diversion rate. The recycling diversion rate is a metric used to calculate the total amount of recycling compared to the total amount of trash.
By recycling all materials from the classroom and cafeteria single-stream, Boston schools are helping to educate their community about the importance of recycling, decrease Boston’s greenhouse gas emissions, and save valuable natural resources.
The Race to Recycle winners included categories for the most improved recycling rate, highest diversion rate, and best outreach and education program. The below winners claimed the ultimate prize – being honored by Mayor Walsh at the City of Boston’s Greenovate Summit! Congratulations to the winners, and thanks to all schools that participated!
May 12, 2015 @ 6:21 PM
I am happily encouraged to see Baldwin ELP Academy’s week 1 recycling amount is above baseline. I’m hoping to acquire a 2nd yellow bucket from our custodian or Jessica or Phoebe, in order to collect our K-0 & K-1 lunch milk cartons’ and other beverage bottles’ unconsumed amounts; as well as empty containers, clean paper food trays and black plastic, square, shallow, tub-bowls; in order to recycle those 5 classrooms’ combined cartons and other recyclables—thus enabling us to reap that potential harvest and reach new recycling heights. I expect us all to generate such efforts, which are duly worth attaining for our fortunate 7 billion people dwellers and Mother Nature’s splendor adorning our planet Earth home.
May 26, 2015 @ 7:58 PM
I love all I read about your schools and way the school believes in sustainability. It is incredible. In college my focus was sustainability and how to make our environment a better place to life and have a healthy lifestyle and to pass it on to our kids. I am completely impressed. I work for a University in Boston send a “Eco-embassador” for the school. It would be a complete miracle to have my son be part of your school and its environment, he’s currently wait listed but one day, maybe just one day, he will experience what I have always taught him. I would like to be a parent volunteer to raise funds for your school on “green day”. Good luck in all you do and keep it up. You are making a difference in our next generation to come…bravo!!
May 26, 2015 @ 8:00 PM
Sorry for the typos…hope I got my point across. You are doing incredible things. Keep it up