Strathallan School in Perthshire has been awarded the Eco-Schools Green Flag award for efforts to rewild parts of its campus and reduce food waste.
The Eco-Schools Green Flag is a global award given to young people making a positive environmental impact.
A central focus for staff and students in Strathallan School’s eco committee is making its campus a better ecosystem for wildlife. The school’s campus is an ecosystem to many plant and wildlife species including deer, woodpeckers, otters, buzzards and bee-hives.
The committee has planted bee-friendly wildflower meadows and over 450 native trees to promote biodiversity on its campus. Members from the school’s John Muir Trust and the Combined Cadet Force dug out the school’s Curling Pond, which helped improve irrigation on school grounds and create habitation for local wildlife.
Being close to nature is part of our school’s experience and it is great to see so many pupils wanting to get involved in everything from leading campaigns to bee-keeping – Paul Vallot, Strathallan School
Pupils led campaigns to reduce litter on the campus and conducted a food-waste audit, which led to a conveyor belt system and promoted recycling and food waste management in the school.
“It’s a proud moment for the school to receive the Eco-Schools Green Flag. Being close to nature is part of our school’s experience and it is great to see so many pupils wanting to get involved in everything from leading campaigns to bee-keeping,” commented Paul Vallot, biology teacher at Strathallan School.
Strathallan School was the only school requested to represent Great Britain at the UNESCO Futures of Education discussion, which hosted leading experts and other schools from across the globe on Zero Water Day.
Sixth form student, Dan De Luca, said: “It’s important we act now to help make the future more sustainable. The trees we’ve been planting and the work we’ve been doing to make more areas of the school accessible to wildlife will have a real benefit for years to come.”
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