More and more schools are taking part in the eco movement, working towards raising awareness within the educational community with regards to going green. It makes me proud to be a teacher when I come across projects like this one, wherein people unite for such a meaningful cause.
Bancroft, Canada - North Hastings High School is putting the earth first as a part of their Earth Week event that will take place between the days April 11 and 15. Collectively, the students will be taking part in a number of different activities and shifts in their daily schedule to help promote more environmentally friendly living.
The week will begin with one of the simplest ways to take care of the planet: picking up the trash. The Monday will see gym classes sparking the week off with taking some time outside cleaning up the community by picking up garbage that lies all over Bancroft after the snow melts.
After picking up the trash, students will then be encouraged more on the Tuesday to eliminate the amount that is wasted each day. Students who come into class using reusable plastic containers will get points for their colour team in the ongoing House Points competition for the 2010-2011 school year. To further encourage the elimination of waste at the school, vending machines will also be shut down for the day not only conserving energy but also stopping the access to the wasteful packaging that fills bins at the school each and every day.
Wednesday will see a large portion of the school go lights out. All the lights will go off for one period of class to save energy and to rely on the natural light that is provided by nature itself. Though the lights will stay on in the tech wing of the school for obvious safety reasons, the rest of the school will be able to take part in a huge energy conservation initiative.
Thursday will be Earth Care Day at the school with the student-driven group serving hot chocolate in the rarely used courtyard at the school. For many of the students who spend their breaks inside the walls of the school, the hope is that there will be an appreciation for earth the week is dedicated to saving by spending some quality time soaking up the sun.
The week will conclude with an eco-friendly twist of fabric. Earth Care along side the NHHS Student Council is putting on a Green Fashion Show. The clothes that will be shown off to the student body will be made solely out of recycled items. House Points are also available on that day in the construction of a artistic statue that is to be made out of recycled items from the school.
Showing posts with label education. Show all posts
Showing posts with label education. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Monday, April 11, 2011
The Environmentally Friendly M.B.A.
Eco-friendly M.B.A. programs now offer combo degrees and green electives....
Environmentally conscious M.B.A. students are increasingly looking for more from their education than a patina of financial acumen and a degree that will ratchet up their income. These students have adopted the goal of sustainability; that is, conducting business in a way that keeps the world in good physical shape for future generations.
Over the next decade, M.B.A. programs will increasingly offer courses that consider the social, environmental, and financial impact of every business decision—the "triple bottom line," says Paul Rowland, executive director of the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education.
Gabriel Kauper is one of the new wave of students exploring how businesses can develop eco-friendly policies and products while still turning a profit. When researching M.B.A. programs, Kauper consulted the Washington-based Aspen Institute's "Beyond Grey Pinstripes" survey, which ranks b-schools that integrate environmental and social issues into their curricula. The George Washington University School of Business in the nation's capital ranked highly in the think tank's report.
Kauper, 28, from Virginia Beach, applied to GWU and was accepted to the class of 2012. When he took his first course in sustainability, he says, "it was like I had found my tribe—other students and professionals who shared my values."
In fact, Kauper's "tribe" has grown as universities have expanded their green offerings. Currently, a handful of business schools, like Dominican University of California in San Rafael and the Presidio Graduate School in San Francisco, feature programs where every course from marketing to accounting includes an environmental and social impact angle.
At Dominican, graduates can receive an M.B.A. in sustainable enterprise, which the school markets as a "GreenMBA." Other institutions are adding sustainability courses as electives or creating combo-degree programs. At the Stanford University Graduate School of Business in Palo Alto, Calif., for example, students can combine an M.B.A. from the business school with a master's in environment and resources from the School of Earth Sciences.
These environmentally enhanced degrees can lead to greater professional opportunities. Of course, nonprofits and federal agencies, like the Environmental Protection Agency, are always hiring. But private employers, including leading consultancies like Booz Allen Hamilton and large companies like Westinghouse and PepsiCo, are also recruiting.
Even graduates with an entrepreneurial bent are capitalizing. For example, in 2005, Atlanta native Jen Boulden, 37, used her M.B.A. in environmental management from GWU to cofound Ideal Bite, a free E-mail newsletter offering eco-friendly tips on how to make a difference in the world.
By 2008, the newsletter had amassed 500,000 subscribers, and Boulden was able to sell the company to Disney for $20 million. She credits her degree with convincing investors that "I was not just a Johnny-come-lately to the green business field. I was an expert."
Erwann Michel-Kerjan, who teaches a class on environmental sustainability and value creation at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School, cautions students that they can't just dream about the environment. They need to show the bottom-line profitability of business decisions to boards of directors. If you master "both sides of the equation, you are very powerful" in the market, he says.
Joel Makower, executive editor of Greenbiz.com, agrees, noting that many businesses still do not actively recruit green M.B.A.s. He suggests students develop critical business skills, like marketing or finance, or learn organizational development, to get hired. Once in the door, they can then find ways to apply their passion for the environment to their job.
Environmentally conscious M.B.A. students are increasingly looking for more from their education than a patina of financial acumen and a degree that will ratchet up their income. These students have adopted the goal of sustainability; that is, conducting business in a way that keeps the world in good physical shape for future generations.
Over the next decade, M.B.A. programs will increasingly offer courses that consider the social, environmental, and financial impact of every business decision—the "triple bottom line," says Paul Rowland, executive director of the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education.
Gabriel Kauper is one of the new wave of students exploring how businesses can develop eco-friendly policies and products while still turning a profit. When researching M.B.A. programs, Kauper consulted the Washington-based Aspen Institute's "Beyond Grey Pinstripes" survey, which ranks b-schools that integrate environmental and social issues into their curricula. The George Washington University School of Business in the nation's capital ranked highly in the think tank's report.Kauper, 28, from Virginia Beach, applied to GWU and was accepted to the class of 2012. When he took his first course in sustainability, he says, "it was like I had found my tribe—other students and professionals who shared my values."
In fact, Kauper's "tribe" has grown as universities have expanded their green offerings. Currently, a handful of business schools, like Dominican University of California in San Rafael and the Presidio Graduate School in San Francisco, feature programs where every course from marketing to accounting includes an environmental and social impact angle.
At Dominican, graduates can receive an M.B.A. in sustainable enterprise, which the school markets as a "GreenMBA." Other institutions are adding sustainability courses as electives or creating combo-degree programs. At the Stanford University Graduate School of Business in Palo Alto, Calif., for example, students can combine an M.B.A. from the business school with a master's in environment and resources from the School of Earth Sciences.
These environmentally enhanced degrees can lead to greater professional opportunities. Of course, nonprofits and federal agencies, like the Environmental Protection Agency, are always hiring. But private employers, including leading consultancies like Booz Allen Hamilton and large companies like Westinghouse and PepsiCo, are also recruiting.
Even graduates with an entrepreneurial bent are capitalizing. For example, in 2005, Atlanta native Jen Boulden, 37, used her M.B.A. in environmental management from GWU to cofound Ideal Bite, a free E-mail newsletter offering eco-friendly tips on how to make a difference in the world.
By 2008, the newsletter had amassed 500,000 subscribers, and Boulden was able to sell the company to Disney for $20 million. She credits her degree with convincing investors that "I was not just a Johnny-come-lately to the green business field. I was an expert."
Erwann Michel-Kerjan, who teaches a class on environmental sustainability and value creation at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School, cautions students that they can't just dream about the environment. They need to show the bottom-line profitability of business decisions to boards of directors. If you master "both sides of the equation, you are very powerful" in the market, he says.
Joel Makower, executive editor of Greenbiz.com, agrees, noting that many businesses still do not actively recruit green M.B.A.s. He suggests students develop critical business skills, like marketing or finance, or learn organizational development, to get hired. Once in the door, they can then find ways to apply their passion for the environment to their job.
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