Brittany noted that the entire project takes place in the classroom, so she can control what is going on and that they weren't using purchased materials or receiving parental assistance. Brittany said, "This  project gave students a chance to work on engineering and entrepreneurship and allowed them to work together." ​

When people think of manufacturing, they often envision environmental problems. Did you know that companies are becoming more sustainable and practicing responsible capitalism? Today, we’re featuring Peter Cirak, Director of Quality Assurance with Seal Dynamics. Located in Tampa, FL, this global distributor reverse engineers aircraft parts to maintenance repair facilities worldwide and even airlines like Delta and Southwest! They have stocking locations in the United States, United Kingdom, Dubai, and Singapore. 

A massive, global company comes with big responsibilities for the planet. How does a large manufacturer like this handle sustainability issues and plan a more environmentally-friendly future? Peter Cirak tells us about Seal Dynamics’ sustainability concerns, current initiatives, and plans for a greener tomorrow!

He says, “We take all that cardboard and shred it in such a way to be used as dunnage.” Dunnage is a material used to secure products during the shipment process. “We take that leftover cardboard and use shredders that recycle that cardboard to use as dunnage.” This tactic is much more sustainable than using something like styrofoam, which is tough to recycle and is actually the worst type of plastic!

“Finding new uses for things that become obsolete is something that we can even do at home! We take full advantage of this at our facility,” says Peter. Seal Dynamics is living up to the three R’s of the environment: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. How can you find new uses for items at home?

One of the largest costs of Seal Dynamics is energy consumption, and they plan to find new ways to cut down on using less electricity. The company is aiming to move and make some upgrades in the future. Peter says he will push to create a more sustainable energy source! He says, “The nice thing about sustainable energy initiatives is that the infrastructure can be placed in such a way where it can handle hurricanes, and this way, you’ve got your own energy source during power outages.” Sustainability is indeed a double-edged sword in a good way!

Peter concluded the interview with an important message for students. He says, “For students going through education right now, people like myself are looking for you to come into the workforce with a passion for sustainable efforts.” Sustainable education is truly the pathway for the future!

Now it is your turn! Conduct some research to learn more about sustainable forms of energy. You can start with some of the resources from our workshop on sustainable energy. What are some energy-saving ideas you could give to Peter? What are some future solutions that Seal Dynamics could implement? 

After reading about Peter Cirak's work or watching the videos, take this quiz and find out if you've got what it takes to be a sustainable superhero! If the quiz does work on this page, you can also take it here.

Yesterday was World Wetlands Day and many organizations posted ideas and information you could use to help your students understand the importance of our precious wetlands in Florida. 

1) Watch the video from WorldWetlandsDay.org

Before students view the video by Wetlands International, ask them to watch for some of the problems and solutions. 

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3) Provide links to other website resources
Students can use the following websites to conduct more research about the importance of clean water and the connections to wetlands. The United Nations SDG website will provide information on the importance of clean water as an essential natural resource. The other two sites will provide connections to wetlands and clean water.

• United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 6: Clean Water 
• WorldWetlandsDay.org
• Wetlands.org

4) Create a local, historical connection
Allow students to investigate the variety of resources on the Florida Everglades from the Florida Center for Instructional Technology. As they view the articles, songs, maps, and other resources, students can relate what they learned about wetlands to Florida. 

Welcome to Part 3 of Sustainability Superheroes in the world of manufacturing! If you haven’t already, make sure to check out Part 1 and Part 2 so you can stay updated on all the exclusive news!

Today, our special guest is Suzanne Alvarez, Print and Packaging Specialist with C&D Print and Packaging Company, located in Pinellas Park, FL. For over 45 years, the company has been working with creative agencies and corporate businesses to bring their printing projects to life. They build lasting relationships with their customers, and consistently exceed their expectations. 
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Print and packaging plays a huge role in consumption and waste, so how does a well-established printing manufacturer with many clients take on the role of being environmentally friendly? Find out in this exclusive interview with Suzanne Alvarez who shares with us the inside scoop on her company’s issues, future plans, and other sustainable initiatives she’s working on!

​She says, “We now use all vegetable based inks and everything is all digital. We’ve been doing this for the last ten years, which is pretty impressive for this industry.” Sounds like a great accomplishment! We’re already off to a good start!

​Despite the sustainability efforts, Suzanne says there are still some harmful processes, like the UV process, which is quite toxic, but the company is doing what they can to avoid this. She says, “We’re using newer equipment for us and clients, but also for sustainability. At the same time it’s been costly on our part, so it’s kinda scary. You think, 'Oh let’s make this big investment,' and all you can do is hope it’s something that other people care about.”

However, C&D does have clients that call them specifically for the fact that they are an award-winning and sustainable company. Overall, it depends on the client and what they want. Sometimes, she’ll even try to negotiate with clients about what they want vs. what they need in order to produce and consume less.

​Suzanne’s company is continuing to find more ways to stay green, despite the many sustainable efforts they’re doing now. “We have started using an LED press. It uses a different kind of ink and drying process. Instead of ink drying on a sheet naturally over time, it is cured with LED lights on top of the paper,” Suzanne says. This removes the toxicity of the production, eliminates the drying powders they used in the past, and uses less paper. It’s also better for the workforce. Plus, the clients love it!

​Another sustainability initiative Suzanne mentioned was about clients making errors, which then creates more waste. But, C&D has a huge recycling program that helps with these mishaps. Suzanne and her company are always prepared!

One problem Suzanne and her company are currently dealing with is their estimating system, which uses too much paper. She says, “We’re working on using less paper wherever possible. I think there’s great room for improvement everywhere like the cups and plastic in offices. And whenever clients want to print and make things, I always ask them what it’s for and what’s your distribution?” 

In the future, Suzanne says she’s looking forward to hemp products coming into the market. The company recently started using hemp paper, which she hopes will go down in price in the future, so that more clients will consider using it for their print projects.

After reading about Suzanne Alvarez’s work or watching the videos, take this quiz and find out if you've got what it takes to be a sustainability superhero! If the quiz does work on this page, you can also take it here.

In this post, we use a Disney song from "Tangled" to engage students. Before students watch the clip, ask them to look for beautiful sights, sounds, and smells Rapunzel experiences when she touches the earth. 

After watching the clip, ask students what would happen if people started throwing trash on the ground. How could it impact people? How could it impact animals? How could it impact plants? Show students the image of trash on the beach and ask them to discuss the possible impacts to people, animals, and plants.

Learn About Human Impact on the Environment
Show the NSTA Generation Genius video. Tell students that while they watch the video, do a quick write/quick draw of things they can do to have a positive impact on the environment.

Create a PSA
Ask students to discuss some of the ways in which humans can have a positive impact. For more information, refer to the lesson plan on Generation Genius or have students conduct research online. Then, they can create a public service announcement in the form of a poster or video. If they choose video, the PSA should be less than one minute. For example, here are some sample PSAs.
 
Save a Tree With Three! (15 seconds)
Did you know that recycling a single three-foot stack of newspapers saves a tree? Now, imagine the forests we could save together. Learn more green tips at (website). This is a public service announcement from (Team Name). 
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Get Your Green On (:30-1:00)
Have you done something green yet today? If not, it’s time to get your green on. Recycle your trash. (Add more ideas here).  
Final sentence (Every day, we have the chance to make our planet a cleaner and greener place. Act locally and change the world by getting your green on!) Learn more at (website). This is a public service message from (Team Name). 

Show what you know!
Share the student posters and/or videos at school and with student families. For example, share some of these with morning news at school. Students can also ask their parents to share their creations to friends and family.

What is the problem with plastics? What made plastics turn from being the miracle container to hated garbage? You might have heard about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Watch the Trash Talk video by NOAA National Ocean Service to find out more about the problems with plastics in the oceans.

What did you discover? How does all of the plastic get into the ocean? What are some of the environmental and economic impacts of dumping plastic into the ocean? 

How do we solve this problem? This is a big problem that involves both producers and consumers. As a consumer, the best way to solve this problem is to lower your use of single use plastic. If you use single use plastic, make sure you deposit the containers in recycling bins. The worst possible decision is to throw your plastic on the ground, as you will discover in the TedEd video: The Life Cycle of a Plastic Bottle.

Before you watch, tell students that they will be hearing about the journeys of three plastic bottles. Ask students to take notes, documenting what happened to each of the bottles. 

What happened to the different bottles? So how does all of that plastic end up in the ocean? What can you do to educate people about the consequences of littering? 

Plastic bottles aren't the only single use plastic problem. Plastic is used extensively in packaging. What are some other ways we can reduce the amount of plastic? Put on your entrepreneurial thinking caps and join us in our Rethink Tank lesson. In this lesson, students learn about entrepreneurship and rethink the way things are made, used or disposed. They will examine current packaging problems we have that create a lot of waste. Then they will use design thinking to design a more sustainable solution. 

You can download a PowerPoint of the activity and the lesson below:

You may recognize this cute character: Olaf, from the film Frozen. In this post, Olaf will help you turn trash into treasure!

Olaf is really good at reducing, reusing, and recycling. Check out how he reused his nose on his snow angel!
He really loves the holidays and is interested in many different holiday traditions. One holiday tradition that many people have is to hang wreaths on their doors. Check out the wreaths in this film clip and try to figure out what they used to make their wreaths.

Did you know that you can make your own wreath with found items? Think about some recycled or repurposed things you have around the house or outside that you can use to make your own holiday wreath. When you reuse items to make something else, it is called "upcycling."  Create your own upcycled wreath. ​Once you have created your wreath, you can take a photo and share it with family and friends. You can even create a DIY post or video about your wreath!

Now, watch the longer version of That Time of Year  and take note of the different traditions.

What holiday traditions did you learn about? Now think about your holiday traditions. What are some of your holiday traditions? Do you use special decorations? What are your family's favorite foods and recipes? Do you have favorite songs? Do you watch any movies together during the holidays? 
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You can make your own holiday traditions song to sing with Olaf! Here are the lyrics to the first part of the song. Replace the bolded paragraph with your own traditions:
Happy, merry, holly, jolly season's greetings here
I'm wondering what your family does at that time of year
Love and joy and peace on Earth and tidings of good cheer
Do you have tradition things
For that time of year
Well, we hang up boughs of evergreen on every single doorway
Bake a giant cookie in the wavy shape of Norway
Go from door to door to door while singing with our choir
Hang up all your giant socks above an open fire
(That sounds safe)
So happy, merry yuletide carols, faithful friends are dear
Thanks for sharing what you do
At that time of year

Create some new holiday decorations from upcycled items. Then, fill in the lyrics to the song, describing your own new upcycled holiday decorations!

For more holiday fun with Frozen, check out some of the activities from the Frozen workshop we held for teachers! 

Did you know that Forky, the engaging talking spork (spoon/fork) was created from trash? Watch the clip from the Toy Story film to find out how Forky went from trash to a treasure!

America Recycles Day was celebrated on November 15 and Keep America Beautiful challenges you to #DoBeautifulThings every day. In this post, like Forky, we will help you turn trash into treasure!

​When you throw something away, where does it go? According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Americans generate approximately 4.51 pounds of trash per person per day. For example, in 2017, Americans generated a total of 267 million tons per day! While much of that waste went to landfills, 94 million tons (35%) were recycled and composted and more than 34 million tons (12.7%) were combusted and turned into energy. That leaves more than 139 million tons (52%) of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) to be landfilled. 

We are calling all Sustainability Superheroes to make a difference!

Turning Trash into Treasure:
Step 1: Look in your recycling bin! You are sure to find some trash that you can reimagine into a character! You can also intercept trash before it goes into the garbage can:)

2) Turn your trash into a character and conduct some research on recycling. You can use some of the resources from our last workshop.

3) Write a script for a short Public Service Announcement (PSA) about recycling. Use some of the documents on this site to find facts and then create a public service announcement. Ideally, the PSA should be less than one minute. Here are sample PSAs:
 

• Save a Tree With Three! (15 seconds) Did you know that recycling a single three-foot stack of newspapers saves a tree? Now, imagine the forests we could save together. Learn more green tips at (website, social media, etc.). This is a public service announcement from (Name). 
• Get Your Green On (:30-1:00) Have you done something green yet today? If not, it’s time to get your green on. Recycle your trash. (Add more ideas here).  Learn more at _____. This is a public service message from ___________. 

3) Check out the very PSA from our new friend Bob. 

This was made with the free Chatterpix app for Android or Apple. After you create your Trash to Treasure characters, record your PSA to share with your friends and family!

For more Toy Story Trash to Treasure link for more educational fun!

Welcome to our new series of elementary interactive decision-making lessons created with Nearpod. This lesson involves making decisions about adopting a road, as seen in the Adopt-a-Highway program.

This Adopt-a-Road Nearpod lesson can be used with K-5 for literacy and social studies as it focuses on economic decision-making and civic participation. In addition, the lesson hits science standards in K-1. Here is the editable link ​. If you start your own free Nearpod account, you can edit the lesson to serve your needs. 

During the lesson, students are introduced to problems with litter and the Adopt-a-Road program. Then, students engage with a decision-making lesson where they have to decide which road to adopt. You can save and edit the Nearpod activity on this editable link or you can use the preview link like a slideshow.

Extras: For more information on the Adopt-a-Road program, visit the Florida Department of Transportation.

We have also included the handouts if you want to download and use them with your students!

Monday, October 5th is World Teachers' Day and celebrates the anniversary of the adoption of the 1966 ILO/UNESCO Recommendation concerning the Status of Teachers. The recommendation set benchmarks and standards for global education. In 2020,  the theme of World Teachers’ Day is: “Teachers: Leading in crisis, reimagining the future”. Now that we have the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), there is a dedicated target (SDG 4) that recognizes education as a key to a sustainable future in the global economy. 

Read more about SDG 4 on the United Nations Sustainable Development Education site . Then, the Worlds' Largest Lesson to find great lessons to teach about quality education. Celebrate your favorite teacher with a virtual card from EarthDay.org and use the site to find some great suggestions to help students design a better future for the planet!