Last week, state legislators, educators and USGBC chapter members from Pennsylvania and the surrounding region gathered at the LEED Gold-certified Paradise Elementary School outside Lancaster for a summit to discuss the successes of the green schools movement and to share ways to promote healthy, high-performing schools in their local communities.
For the last four years I have been able to see the green schools movement grow out of the communities USGBC represents. The Green Schools Committee volunteers and the chapter staff that support them are working around the clock, every day of the year to improve learning environments in their communities. The people I have the privilege of working with over email, phone and webcast are making real change happen at the local, state and national level.
Rachel Gutter, the director of the Center for Green Schools at the U.S. Green Building Council, received the World Green Building Council Chairman’s Award this week at the WorldGBC Congress in Stuttgart, Germany. Rachel was honored for her leadership at the forefront of the green schools movement, and working to make healthy, energy-efficient schools accessible to everyone across the globe.
Last month, I had the incredible opportunity to travel to Beijing, China for the 8th International Conference on Green & Energy Efficient Building to discuss the green schools movement. Although there are so many implicit differences between the U.S. and China – the language and culture are incredibly diverse from ours – I tested my assumption that healthy, high performing kids are a universal value that requires no translation.
At the end of last year, I shared with you that I thought the green schools movement had reached a tipping point. Even in these first weeks of 2012, the many players in this movement are redefining this conversation and our strategy for putting every student in a green school within this generation.
Yesterday, state legislators, key decision makers and USGBC chapter members from across the South and Midwest convened at Richardsville Elementary School in Kentucky, the nation’s first net-zero energy school, for a “Common Ground” event to discuss the success of the green schools movement in the region and the best practices that can be applied to their own communities.
The Center has several new videos highlighting our work over the past year. These videos feature programs and events such as the Center for Green Schools Fellowship Program, and the U.S. Green Building Council Green Schools Symposium. We also created a video that gives a great overview of the importance of green schools, and how we are furthering the mission of putting every student in a green school within this generation.
A diverse group of young people who are advancing green schools within their communities were recently invited to meet with White House officials and offer insight into the role of youth in the green schools movement. Every week, the White House recognizes a group of local leaders who are helping America win the future as Champions of Change, and this week’s award highlights the efforts of student green school leaders who are inspiring larger community action.