School becoming more environmentally friendly

Date: 20 February 2015 By: News Correspondent

The Ridgeway Independent School outside Louis Trichardt is fast becoming a recognised environmentally friendly school.

During 2014, they participated in an international programme of the Foundation for Environmental Education. In South Africa, this programme is managed by the Wildlife and Environment Society of South Africa (WESSA), in partnership with the World Wildlife Fund.

The purpose of the programme is to improve the quality of a school’s environment, organize environmental action days, set up efficient recycling, create awareness about water and energy consumption and to educate on major current sustainable development issues.

Ridgeway school received their first programme certificate during a prestigious event hosted in Polokwane on Friday, 13 February.  

Eco-school is a programme which aims to coordinate education and sustainable development within schools, by means of a four-step programme. Participating schools begin by completing a year-long environmental project at their school, which is audited by WESSA, for which they receive accreditation rewards. The aim, for Ridgeway, is to work their way up from a bronze certificate, to become a school with a green-flag status.

During 2014, Ridgeway assembled an Eco council to motivate students to participate. The theme was Water Conservation, and students participated at all levels, not only to ensure that water is saved, but also to clean the school grounds.

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Mrs Karien de Villiers (right) of the Ridgeway Independent School with the bronze certificate that the school received as part of the WESSA Eco-schools programme. With her is Miss South Africa Earth 2014, Ilze Saunders. Photo supplied.