The Conseil scolaire public du Nord-Est de l'Ontario (CSPNE) announced this week that five of its schools have been awarded Ontario EcoSchools certification for 2023, including three in the North Bay area.
École secondaire publique Écho du Nord in Kapuskasing achieves Silver certification. École publique Héritage (North Bay) and École aux Quatre-Vents (Parry Sound) and École secondaire publique Nipissing Ouest (Sturgeon Falls) receive Gold certification, while École secondaire publique Odyssée in North Bay takes top honours with Platinum certification.
"These schools have earned this recognition thanks to the commitment of staff and students working together to reduce their ecological impact and improve their environmental performance," CSPNE stated in a release.
To receive EcoSchools certification, participating schools had to initiate projects that had a positive ecological impact.
According to the report issued by the national organization, as of June 16, CSPNE schools had carried out 72 ecological actions, experienced 435 hours of outdoor learning and 43 students had been part of an EcoTeam in one of the five schools certified this year.
This represents a considerable increase in the eco-responsible commitment of CSPNE school communities. What's more, the five recipient schools are aligned with several United Nations sustainable development goals, such as water conservation, energy efficiency in 44 classrooms, 251 registered waste-free meals, contamination-free rooms in recycling bins, and schoolyard greening activities that have sequestered 7 tonnes of CO2e.
In fact, the EcoÉcoles action bank includes over 50 actions to choose from among 12 themes, from waste to energy, health and well-being, biodiversity and nature. Among the most popular initiatives at CSPNE are community clean-ups, textile waste detour, Earth Day, indoor and greenhouse gardening, and school tree planting and care.
Ontario EcoSchools is an educational program that engages environmental leaders in reducing the ecological footprint of schools and building environmentally responsible school communities.
The CSPNE congratulates the participants who contributed to the realization of the many eco-responsible projects.
