About Us
GrowNYC's Recycling Champions Program (RCP)  develops best practices for recycling in NYC schools in partnership with the  NYC DOE Office of Sustainability  and  NYC Department of Sanitation . Check out the  RCP Toolkit  to find resources that can help recycling take off at your school!


THIS ISSUE FEATURES TOP FIVE LISTS FILLED WITH INSPIRATION AND IDEAS TO HELP YOUR SCHOOL RECYCLING PROGRAM TAKE OFF THIS SPRING.

5 Reasons to Recycle in School
 
       PS 30, Brooklyn, Student Green Team 
  1. Students are watching. Know what and where to recycle; students will learn by your example.
     
  2. 1.1 million NYC students are the future! Recycling well in schools teaches the next generation of decision makers how to care for the world's resources.
     
  3. Recycling is real a time example with many curriculum connections including: human and environment interactions, economic systems, community resources, and civic participation, to name just a few. Recycling is interdisciplinary, lending itself to investigations in STEM, social studies, and literacy!
     
  4. Recycling is a life skill that students will be required to practice throughout their time in school and beyond. It's a good habit that needs to be practiced frequently and with consistency, no different than other socialization skills taught to help students participate in society.
     
  5. Students take the lesson of recycling home, helping families to improve recycling practices and helping to make NYC more sustainable.
5 Fantastic Field Trip Ideas
 PS 295, Brooklyn, Visit to Sims        

  1. Sims Municipal Recycling:  What happens to materials after they are placed into the recycling bin? Take a free tour of the Sims Recycling Education Center (REC) where school groups learn about recycling and sustainability, and witness what happens to NYC's recyclable materials.
     
  2. Materials for the Arts (MFTA): The MTFA warehouse is filled with donated materials from companies and individuals that no longer need them and are freely available to artists and educators. Visitors will use their creativity to make artwork to take home.
     
  3. Pratt Industries: From March through December, high school teachers and students can take a free tour the Staten Island paper mill where more than 1000 tons of 100% recycled paper is produced every day from NYC's paper recycling collection.  
     
  4. Freshkills Park: From largest landfill to park, the unique history of Freshkills Park provides the perfect case-study for issues of waste management, park planning, and sustainability. 
     
  5. GrowNYC's Governors Island Teaching Garden:  GrowNYC's Governors Island Teaching Garden is an 8,000 square foot urban farm that aims to engage, excite, and educate its visitors in all aspects of urban farming. NYC schoolchildren have the opportunity to plant, water, harvest, and cook the garden's wide array of vegetables, herbs, and fruits. Registration is now open for the spring 2016 season. Time slots: 10am-12pm and 11am-1pm.
5 Ways to Get Support for Recycling Programs
 
PS 130, Manhattan, Key Stakeholder Meeting  
  1. Create a Student Leadership/GreenTeam to spearhead a recycling campaign and help integrate environmental stewardship into the school culture. These students can help educate their peers, hold recycling contests, create videos, posters and other educational materials with your school in mind
     
  2. Ditch the Solo Act and Recruit a Team because school wide recycling requires the participation of the key adult stakeholders who can help support the effort. Don't forget to include the Principal, Sustainability Coordinator, Custodial Engineer, science faculty and cafeteria staff.
     
  3. Include recycling as a regular part of preexisting meetings, when key stakeholders will already be present. For example, add recycling to the agenda of monthly safety meetings or Facuty PDs. Be sure to focus on what has happened, what needs to happen and keeping open lines of communication between all stakeholders. 
     
  4. Monitor and Communicate Results in order to celebrate progress and make any barriers transparent. Use all communication methods ---- print flyers, send emails, put up posters, include in newsletters, websites, morning announcements, at assemblies ---- because a recycling program that no one has heard of is usually not very successful.
     
  5. Seek contests and recognition for your efforts! DSNYGolden Apple Awards, The US Carton Council, and the National Wildlife Federation Eco Schools all offer recognition and cash prizes for expemplary recycling related activities and programs. Use the award application to motivate students and staff to step up their recycling game! Even if you are not a recipient of an award, be sure to recognize everyone's efforts with a special celebration.
5 Great Green Team Activities
PS 30, Staten Island, Student Green Team      

  1. Create recycling campaigns!  Make posters, give recycling presentations to other classes, sponsor a recycling competition, or hold a student assembly to launch school recycling. Sample PowerPoint presentations for classroom recycling or cafeteria recycling assemblies can be found on our website. 
     
  2. Conduct a waste audit!  Figuring out how much trash your school produces can be eye-opening and help convey the importance of recycling. 
     
  3. Monitor classroom recycling efforts! Conduct weekly inspections/audits of classrooms to grade their efforts. Post grades somewhere public, such as a hallway bulletin boards.  
     
  4. Make art!  Film a short video, paint a mural, or create  a song and dance routine to show at a school-wide assembly.
     
  5. Participate in contests!  Involving your Green Team in contests is a great way to let them know their work is valued outside of the school environment, and that other schools are working toward sustainability.
5 Frequently Misplaced Items

  1.  Pizza Box: If it's mostly clean (little grease and sauce) place it in the green bin with paper and cardboard. If it's really coated in cheese and sauce throw it in the trash OR if your school is an Organics School, place it in the brown food scrap/soiled paper bin.
     
  2. Paper Coffee Cups: If it's empty, place your paper cup in the green bin (paper and cardboard.) Plastic lids go in the blue bin (Metal, Glass, Plastics and Cartons). 
     
  3. Compostable Plate: Organics School? Place the plate along with food scraps in the brown bin. If your school is not on the Organics route, the plate should be collected as landfill/trash. Plates are not to be recycled with paper due to heavy food contamination. 
     
  4. Drinking Straws: Blue Bin (Metal, Glass, Plastics, and Cartons). 
     
  5. Tissues: Always go in the trash can.
For information on where to place other hard to recycle items see the "How to Get Rid of..." section of the DSNY website. Simply type in the item to view a list of disposal options.
New York City Watersheds
activity guide for grades 5-12

GrowNYC is proud to announce the availability of " New York City Watersheds ". This manual covers the state of water worldwide and in NYC and includes activities for students. A brief history and description of the NYC Water Supply System and of coastal watersheds within the city is included. Classroom activities are geared towards grades 5-12, and cover learning about watersheds, building model watersheds and service learning projects in neighborhoods or city parks.
Upcoming Opportunities
Winter Stop N' Swaps Across NYC
Bring clean, reusable, portable items you no longer need and take home something new-to-you. No need to bring something in order to take something. No furniture or large items, please.  3/5 - Staten Island, 3/12 - Queens, 3/19 - UES, Manhattan. For a complete list of upcoming swaps, see our  website.
Sustainability Coordinator Gathering
Join NYC Eco-Schools and GrowNYC Recycling Champions at PS 16R (80 Monroe Avenue, Staten Island) on Thursday, March 24th from 4pm to 6pm for a special STEM-focused SUSTAINABILITY COORDINATOR GATHERING!  Snacks and coffee will be served! This Gathering is free and open to formal and non-formal educators across NYC. Only 40 spots available. Please RSVP online.  Questions? Contact:  fanoe@nwf.org   or (646) 502-7096 .
Grow to Learn Supply Give Away
Stop by our annual spring supply giveaway on March 5th, to pick up tools, gloves and other materials for working with kids in the garden! A vehicle or several garden members will be necessary to transport these materials, which will be supplied first-come, first-served to schools registered with Grow to Learn. March 5th, 10am - 1pm, at the GreenThumb compound in Queens (Queens Plaza South and 10th St).  RSVP required by Wednesday , March 2nd.
GrowNYC Annual Spring Plant Sale 
Every year since 1986, GrowNYC holds our Annual Spring Plant Sale in order to provide community groups with perennial and annual flowering plants, herbs, and vegetables from Greenmarket farmers at wholesale prices. Plants are for neighborhood open space projects only (e.g. community gardens, schools, block associations, churches, etc.) and may be sold to raise other funds. Click here for dates and locations.
Grant for School Recycling
The NYSAR3 grant program provides up to $500 per school to rejuvenate existing programs or to develop new programs centered around the 3 R's (reduce, reuse, recycle). Awards will be made twice yearly; this is a competitive grant so imagination, ingenuity and initiative are valued. Apply today!
Carton to Garden Spring 2016 Contest
Show your students' creativity by re-purposing milk and juice cartons from your school cafeteria to either build or enhance your school garden. Educators can engage students in a hands-on experience creating teachable moments on environmental stewardship, sustainable packaging and healthy living.  The best use of cartons in a school garden gives your school the chance to win one of 14 prizes with a 
grand prize valued at $5,000. Entries due by April 13th.

GrowNYC  offers more than great recycling programs for your school. Learn about GrowNYC's other environmental education programs: Greenmarket Youth Education, Grow to Learn, Governors Island Teaching Garden and Learn It Grow It Eat It!  
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