Approach to Achieving Campus Sustainability

Introduction

Sustainability entails meeting the requirements of current generations without jeopardising the needs of future generations while maintaining a balance of economic expansion, environment protection, and social well-being. Sustainability practice acknowledges how these challenges are interrelated and imbibe a holistic perspective for life.

A sustainable school takes a strategy that extends beyond the curriculum and addresses the creation, management, and maintenance of the entire school structure. I Can recognises the need of instilling sustainable behaviours in children at a young age. They may use these acquired skills to do their bit for the planet and ensure the survival of future generations. 

As Mysuru’s first Cambridge Pathway School, we have taken initiative in creating opportunities for the personal, professional and lifelong development of our students. As a community, it is important we create tangible change while working with neighbouring communities towards sustainable goals for our future.

Year in and year out, the I Can attitude and campuses, grow more environmentally conscious.  Here are a few sustainability goals we are currently working on:

Plantation Drive

I Can organises plantation drives for their learners and faculty, during which all stakeholders work in unison to plant saplings throughout the school. The idea is for them to not only plant trees but also continuously nurture them until they grow. Together each of our contributions makes our campus a sustainable dream come true project.   One of the few ways to prepare students to appreciate sustainability is to garden and grow various types of fruits, vegetables, and flowers around campus on their own. This also inspires initiative from different leaders in school like the culinary and ecology student leaders.

Material Recycling

All materials in and around the school are recycled to the greatest extent possible. During Christmas for instance, children bring old books, stationery, and other materials to school, and they are donated every year to those in need. Classroom learning encourages the use of recycled material for all activities, models and projects. The new campus building, for example, makes use of recycled tiles and bricks to ensure no material goes to waste and encourages eco-friendly handling and consumption of raw material.

Compost Pit & Leaf Compost

For 15 years, I Can has served nutritious hot meals in school to all its learners and staff members. Waste prevention and waste management are critical components of I Can's sustainability initiative. We are currently creating a compost pit with our learners for all of the food waste like the peels of fruits, vegetables and other food waste. We have also created a separate pit for all of the dried leaves that are lying around campus, which will be used later as manure to nourish their plants.

Travelling & Sustainability 

As part of our commitment to imbibing an eco-friendly lifestyle, the school held weeklong workshops on travel and sustainability as a lifestyle. Children collaborated with architects, designers and bushcraft enthusiasts to appreciate minimalism, the beauty of being a traveller vs a tourist and building functional dynamic models using different raw materials. This helps learners develop an acumen for sustainable living from listening to stories of travel and adventure, and building models with their hands. 

Rainwater Harvesting 

I Can hopes to have a rainwater harvesting facility on campus in the near future. This is one of the school's initiatives to replenish the water table. The collected rainwater will be used to water the saplings and trees throughout the campus. I Can aims to make its campus more environmentally friendly.

Solar Energy 

Another goal for the near future is to install solar cells around the campus rooftops. Solar panels will be used to generate electricity. I Can has begun to implement this in pockets, mostly outdoors, using solar-powered lights on campus.

Other plans for the future that I Can has for the upkeep of their sustainability practices include beekeeping and cleaning the Varuna canal.

Teaching Sustainability

As part of ongoing classroom discussions, children are frequently taken outside the four walls of the classroom to study under a tree or on the outdoor study platform spaces around campus. I Can is located along the Varuna canal and situated amid lush green paddy fields and plenty of open space. Children naturally learn to appreciate and observe the weather patterns and local vegetation, as they are surrounded by tranquil greenery. Some other small yet significant practices that we follow are: 

• Plastic bottles are not permitted in school, and no chocolates may be distributed if they are wrapped in plastic or paper. 
• Paper cups and plastic cutlery may appear to be cost-effective, but they are not environmentally friendly and are therefore prohibited in schools. 
• Flyers and posters are considered a waste of paper; instead, all information is communicated via email. 

Conclusion

As a practice, I Can’s campuses practice sustainability on a daily basis by actively reducing the usage of non-biodegradable materials in and around campus. 

A sustainable school approaches the campus, curriculum, and community as a whole. Sustainable schools make an effort to involve their outlying neighbourhoods and work together to enhance the local ecology. This is the first step toward creating healthier, more environmentally friendly schools and societies, thus contributing to environmental protection and holistic development. I Can is, doing its bit as a responsible educational organization by helping its students recognise the right tools to tackle the climate crisis and develop a lasting passion for sustainable living by making a difference in school and in their homes.