Green Learning Curve

Did you know that Americans’ total yearly waste could fill a convoy of garbage trucks long enough to wrap around the Earth six times and reach halfway to the moon? And were you aware that for every ton of paper that is recycled, the following is saved: 7,000 gallons of water; 380 gallons of oil; and enough electricity to power an average house for six months?

If you are an educator in Indiana, chances are you already knew these facts.

As part of “Learn Green, Live Green,” a statewide initiative designed to encourage an earth-friendly lifestyle, the Indiana Department of Education (IDOE) launched a Web site packed with tips, fun facts, green activities and more. The Web site is an exhaustive resource center for teachers and administrators who may be concerned about the environment but don’t know how to start making a difference.

As part of the initiative, IDOE asked schools statewide to share ideas on how to infuse standards-based curricula with green concepts. The best practices show that teaching sustainability on a regular basis -- not just during Earth Week -- is within reach. The educators who embarked on the journey found that by greening their curricula, they saved their school money, better prepared their students for the 21st-century workforce, helped preserve the environment and built a stronger community along the way.

Green state of mind

Indiana may have had a rude awakening when Forbes magazine ranked it 49th on its “America’s Greenest (and Least Green) States” list, published in October 2007. Far from discouraged, Hoosiers took on the sustainability challenge, and the ramifications permeate into state and local government.

“The Indiana Department of Education made it a priority to go green in 2008,” said Lynelle Miller, a spokesperson for the department, adding that her office adopted simple but impactful solutions focused on reducing, reusing and recycling. “We wanted to encourage schools to do the same. So we launched the Learn Green, Live Green initiative in January [2008] with the idea that each of us can make simple changes to our daily routines that have a true and lasting impact.”