Thanks to the efforts of three 5th graders, we will be piloting a composting/recycling program in the cafeteria at Van Allen Elementary School in North Liberty, Iowa! The kids will be making a 2-minute video to show other students how to compost/recycle and this video will be presented at the beginning of every class (from K-6th grade.) After the tutorial is shown, we will bring each individual class to the cafeteria and have a live show-and-tell on how to properly dispose of their school lunch waste. Then, there will be a 2-week supervision period while the program is brought to the cafeteria for the first time to make sure it's running correctly.

We need funding to buy the materials for this program, such as: bins, can-rinsing stations, bags, gloves, poster signs, and buckets. My co-worker and I, who work with Green Iowa AmeriCorps and recently took on the position of sustainability coordinators for the Iowa City Community School District, are thrilled to be introducing composting to the district and we hope to expand this to other schools!