Vista del Valle is one of three L.A.-area elementary schools—along with Lowell Elementary, and McKinley Elementary--to be named a finalist today in L.A. County’s third annual Trash-Free Lunch Challenge. The contest, created by environmental non-profit Grades of Green and sponsored in part by the Sanitation Districts of L.A. County, teaches kids to reduce trash and care for the environment by using reusable lunch containers and by sorting compostable and recyclable materials.
Lowell Elementary School in Long Beach, McKinley Elementary School in Santa Monica, and Vista del Valle Elementary School in Claremont were selected from a group of 24 entrants countywide.
The Trash-Free Lunch Challenge has diverted 100,000 bags of trash from area landfills and saved schools thousands of dollars in trash liners and waste hauler pick-ups over three years.
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A judging panel of five environmental experts will visit the three elementary schools to select the winner on Thursday, April 3, and the winning school will be honored with a celebration on Tuesday, April 29. All schools will receive education grants from Chevron. The winning school will receive a $1,000 grant. The two runners-up will each receive a $750 grant. Additional sponsors include the City of Santa Monica, LAcarGUY, 4th District County of Los Angeles Supervisor Don Knabe, Warner Brothers, Wean Green, and the Johnson Ohana Charitable Foundation.
Three middle schools—David Starr Jordan Middle in Burbank, Jane Addams Middle in Lawndale, and Parras Middle in Redondo Beach—were also named finalists in the competition. Of those three, one winner will be selected from the middle and high school category. Another judging panel will visit the finalist middle schools on April 16, and the winning middle school will be honored with a celebration on April 22.
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“The finalists in both the elementary and middle/high school categories have cut waste 80% on average. The judging panel will have a challenging time picking the winners,” said Grace Robinson Hyde, Sanitation Districts’ Chief Engineer and General Manager. “With 24 schools participating in this year’s program, more than 13,000 students have been inspired to care for the environment now and for years to come.”
“Once we show kids how important it is to reduce waste and how easy it is, they realize they can make a difference and begin habits they will carry with them for life,” said Lisa Coppedge, Grades of Green Co-Founder and Director of Programs. “And now that the Trash-Free Lunch Challenge is wrapping up its third year, we will have changed the habits of more than 28,000 students just with this program alone.”
Even though this year’s Trash-Free Lunch Challenge is nearly complete, any school may initiate Grades of Green’s Trash Free Lunch program, as well as more than 40 other environmental activities, at any time. Complete instructions are available at no cost to schools at www.gradesofgreen.org.
About the Sanitation Districts of Los Angeles County
The Sanitation Districts are a regional agency consisting of 23 independent special districts serving over 5.5 million people in 78 cities and unincorporated territory within Los Angeles County. The Sanitation Districts protect public health and the environment through innovative and cost-effective wastewater and solid waste management, and in doing so convert waste into resources such as recycled water, energy, and recycled materials. For more information on the Sanitation Districts, please visit www.lacsd.org.
About Grades of Green
Grades of Green is an environmental education nonprofit dedicated to providing parents, students, and educators with free, easy, hands-on and fun tools to educate, inspire, and empower pre-K–12 students to take steps to care for the environment. Anyone who wants to implement sustainability programs can register their school online—at no cost—to get tips and measure their success on reducing trash, emissions, harmful classroom chemicals, plus dozens of other ways to help the environment. Grades of Green has been honored with many awards, including the U.S. EPA’s prestigious Environmental Award.
The nonprofit is growing rapidly, with more than 146,000 students enrolled across 33 states and five countries, including many low-income schools. Grades of Green’s goal is simple--to enroll thousands of schools with millions of kids, all caring for the environment and collectively making a difference. For more information on Grades of Green visit www.gradesofgreen.org or contact Kim Martin at 310-291-4476.