One woman’s four-year effort has brought the largest environmental education program in the world into the territory’s schools.
Working through the V.I. Conservation Society, Valerie Peters last week launched Eco Schools Virgin Islands, a chapter of the larger Eco Schools program that started 25 years ago and has since expanded to more than 67 countries, reaching more than 19 million school children.
Last week, Peters was able to add Jane E. Tuitt Elementary to the list, with hopes of eventually expanding to all schools throughout the territory’s two districts.
Tied to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development goals, Eco Schools follows a seven-step “change process” that encourages students to get involved in making their campuses more sustainable. Peters said that could include anything from reducing energy consumption to making a school more green, and Tuitt took the first step last week by opening up a part of its grounds for gardening.
Trainers and trainees from My Brother’s Workshop brought in wooden plant beds and bench kits that Tuitt’s students, along with volunteers from the U.S. Coast Guard, helped assemble, while Boschulte Landscaping provided the soil for the project.
“This is a promising new program that’s going to be taking root in several of the public schools,” My Brother’s Workshop founder Scott Bradley said. “This time we came out as volunteers, our young men fabricated the benches and planter kits, but it’s the kids who ultimately get to experience how it is to have gardens and raise plants.”
During a school tour with senators last week, Tuitt principal Thelca Bedminster spoke about the importance of securing private partnerships to help the school supplement its elective programs, which are suffering from a lack of staff. In an interview with the Source, Peters also spoke about the need for the private sector to be more involved and said that as schools identify more needs, Eco Schools VI will try and fill them.
“This effort brings the concept of sustainability into the curriculum and helps empower students to see the world through a green lens,” Peters explained. “That includes thinking about things like climate changes, water conservation, energy conservation, schoolyard habitats, consumption and waste. The raised beds, picnic tables and benches at Tuitt fit into those ideas, and also offers outdoor classroom and learning opportunities for students.”
Right now, Peters says she’s a “one-woman show” and is looking for more volunteers and partnerships to facilitate the project’s expansion. It’s going to be a long process, but the goal is to have the program in some way in all local schools, and Peters said she’s going to be active in raising funds and awareness.
“We get our children active in the preservation of our resources and we want them to have a better understanding of their role in the world and how they can interact with the environment without destroying it,” she said. “We’re being impacted by all kinds of different things and I think we can work through that, but just like everywhere else, it’s going to take a village.”
Those who want to learn more about the program or volunteer can contact Peters by sending email to blueflagusvi@gmail.com.
