Cool School Challenger
Cool news for cool schools
Summer 2008 Edition
Welcome to the inaugural edition of the Cool
School Challenger, a quarterly update on the Cool School Challenge
program.
In this issue:
- Congratulations, Challengers! Update on school participation.
- Coming soon: New & improved program materials
- 2008-2009 Workshops
- Bring Powerful Choices to your middle school classroom
- Calendar Check here for upcoming events
- Cool tips for the summer
Congratulations, Challengers! As the 2008 academic year winds to a close, pledges from more than 20 schools have been received. Twelve schools have submitted their results, reporting nearly 500,000 lbs in CO2 reductions, combined. From Port Angeles to Bellingham to Sammamish to Tumwater, schools, staff and students are collaborating to make a difference for the air – and planet! Congratulations to all for their tremendous success. We hope we’ll see you again next year. Check out "Who's Cool" for a complete list of participating schools.
Still tallying?
Not to worry - there is no deadline for submitting your results or receiving the honorarium offered by Puget Sound Energy. If you were unable to complete the Challenge this year but wish to continue with it next year, you will still be eligible for the $200 honorarium. Here's a recap of how it works:
- After you've implemented the Challenge, complete the information requested in this brief online form.
- When you have completed the Challenge, we'll send you a quick evaluation to learn about your experience with the program and what we could do to improve program materials.
- Once you complete the evaluation, Puget Sound Energy will send your $200 honorarium.
New & improved program materials This program was designed by teachers for teachers - and in response to the excellent and helpful feedback we've received from those who have completed the Challenge, we’ll be taking advantage of the summer break to revise the Cool School Challenge toolkit. A key improvement will be the creation of a downloadable Excel spreadsheet to streamline the calculations in the Classroom Audit section. We’ll also be adding more classroom activities to the website, focusing on solid waste/recycling, vehicle idling, and more! Check back for updates later this summer.
Your tips, ideas and comments on any of the program materials are always welcome - send feedback to info@coolschoolchallenge.org
2008-2009 workshops planned Puget Sound Energy will once again coordinate a series of workshops throughout western Washington in the fall of 2008 and early 2009 to introduce teachers to the Cool School Challenge. The workshops are free to attend and will offer clock hours. A detailed schedule will be posted to the website soon so be sure to check back. Or – send an email to info@coolschoolchallenge.org to receive notification as workshop dates and locations are solidified.
Bring Powerful Choices to your middle school classroom Powerful Choices for the Environment is a free environmental education program that inspires middle school students to think about how their everyday choices do make a difference. Environmental education professionals, trained in science education and local resource use, deliver this hands-on, four-day program in middle school classrooms in Puget Sound Energy's service area. The curriculum focuses on air quality, land resources, water conservation, and electricity use and is aligned with the Washington Essential Academic Learning Requirements. Powerful Choices visits 13,000 students a year at 55 local schools and is sponsored by Puget Sound Energy and 20 local partnering agencies. Powerful Choices is a great complement to the Cool School Challenge. Visit Powerful Choices for the Environment for more information.
Cool tips for the summer Enjoy the sunshine this summer and while you’re at it, take action to help reverse global climate change.
- Hang your clothes to dry Just because we live in the Northwest doesn’t mean you can’t hang your clothes to dry. Western Washington has an average of 71 sunny days a year, meaning you can hang your clothes outside at least 20% of the time and drying racks work year-round indoors! Carbon dioxide savings: 181 pounds every year!
- Buy local food Get your food from local producers. You’ll be more connected with what you eat and you’ll save energy – a typical meal requires up to 17 times more petroleum if it was transported as opposed to produced locally .
- Stay close to home Leisure travel by car in the U.S. adds up to over 9 billion gallons of fuel and 90 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions every year. There are plenty of ways to have fun right in your backyard.
- Go to www.ImCool.info for more cool tips that will help you go retro with your carbon dioxide output.
About the Cool School Challenge The Cool School Challenge is a web-based climate education program designed to engage students and teachers in practical strategies to reduce carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions schoolwide. The program was developed by the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency in partnership with Puget Sound Energy and the Northwest Clean Air Agency.
