The Brookside Elementary Green Team is expanding! Thanks to the continued efforts of parent Missy Liu, and new Green Team leader and librarian Kevin Rodgers, the team has grown to approximately 90 members in kindergarten through sixth grade. The Brookside Green Team monitors the recycling station to teach and inspire others to sort properly at lunchtime. Volunteers from each class serve two weeks in the fall and again in the spring. One student at each lunch period serves as captain to organize the team and be available for challenging questions. The team worked with a King County Green Team specialist to train members on which items go in the food share, recycling, compost, and garbage containers. The team was also trained on how to inspire participation.

This year, many elementary school Green Teams are working with a King County Green Team specialist to create short videos on improving waste-sorting practices, reducing waste, respecting the Green Team, and conducting a sorting competition. Collaboration with a specialist can be at whatever level your school needs. For teams with experience making videos, sometimes a quick brainstorming conversation by phone is all that is needed. Other teams have worked with a specialist to create storyboards. Still others receive help with all steps from start to finish. Techniques include live-action as well as stop motion, white boarding, and “1 Second Everyday” clips. If you are interested in expanding your message and reaching the whole school through video, contact a Green Team specialist to plan your own project or call 206-981-2240.

At Northshore Middle School, teacher and Green Team leader Trudy Swain organized the Family, Career, and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) and two leadership classes to get the school ready to collect compostable materials. Leadership teachers Robin Smith and Ryan Sharnbroich hosted Green Team workshops during school while FCCLA met after school. Each group worked with a King County Green Team specialist to understand why waste is such a huge problem and how they can help. Each group reflected on the best ways to reach the students at the school and generated a list of project ideas. They narrowed the list down to achievable actions in the next month or two. Projects include creating an advisory lesson or game, organizing sorting monitors, preparing a presentation for the school board, and creating and maintaining a Green Team Instagram account.

High school and middle school Green Teams are exploring what makes an idea “stick” in order to convince more people to waste less and recycle more. Have you ever wondered why some messages are shared and heeded while others are ignored? When have you changed a behavior and what convinced you to change? These questions are important to Green Teams working to inspire others to sort items properly in the classroom and cafeteria. This fall, secondary teams are working with King County Green Team specialists to design posters, announcements, videos, and activities that really work. One tool they are using comes from the book Contagious by Jonah Berger which describes six characteristics (called STEPPS) to plan successful waste reduction projects. Contact a Green Team specialist or 206-981-2240 to learn more about this tool and to plan your own green marketing project.

Schools in 17 school districts and 35 cities in King County have earned recognition as King County Green Schools. Over 151,000 students in participating schools have had opportunities to learn about and engage in waste reduction, recycling, and other conservation practices.

Read success stories of schools and districts recognized as King County Green Schools.

As of October 2018

• 257 schools have been recognized as Level One King County Green Schools
• 152 schools have been recognized as Level Two King County Green Schools
• 111 schools have been recognized as Level Three King County Green Schools
• 70 schools have been recognized as Sustaining Green Schools in one or more years

Join the 292 schools that have benefited from the program! Get help to engage your school in improving waste reduction, recycling, and other conservation practices. As of Oct. 2018, 60 percent of K-12 schools in King County outside the City of Seattle have received assistance, tools, and recognition from the King County Green Schools Program.

Your school does not need to have a student Green Team in place before it signs up to participate in the program. Although it’s terrific when schools encourage student leaders and involve student teams, your school may sign up for assistance whether or not it has a student team. And if your school wants to form a student team, we’ll share what has worked well in other schools.

Remind students, teachers, and other staff members to recycle right. Avoid “wish-cycling” -- placing materials in a recycling bin because you hope they can be recycled! Only place accepted items in recycling bins. A recycling bin contaminated with unacceptable materials such as liquids and food can lead to an entire truckload of recyclable items being sent to a landfill.

The King County Solid Waste Division’s Destination Zero Waste program is a great way for students to learn about where their garbage goes and how they can recycle right. The program offers a tour of the Bow Lake Recycling and Transfer Station in Tukwila where students get to meet Solid Waste Division employees, hear about what they do, and see garbage management operations up close and personal. Students also receive a recycling lesson and a healthy snack. Transportation to and from the facility is provided free of charge by the Solid Waste Division. For more information or to arrange a tour, contact Clarissa Antone at 206-263-1203.