Cold Spring School

Go Green Community Service

Join your Cold Spring School friends in Go Green Community Service events. 

Have fun and make a difference in our community.

Coastal Cleanup Day
September 15th, 2012 9 AM to noon
East Beach or Butterfly Beach

Montecito Beautification Day
2012 November 3rd, 2012

Cold Spring School Cleanup Day
Every Monday morning

REDUCE-REUSE-RECYCLE, THINK GREEN,
BE GREEN, & HELP OUR COMMUNITY

WF & R Lunch Program

Make Everyday a Waste Free Lunch Day!
This Year Pack a Waste Free & Reusable Lunch Everyday

Did you know that the average American school-age child throws away 67 pounds of food packaging a year?  This includes plastic water bottles, sandwich baggies, and juice boxes. That equates to 18,760 pounds of lunch waste for just one average-size elementary school. That’s a lot of trash!

Start reducing those numbers by packing a waste-free lunch for your kids and/or for your day at work. It’s really easy, just follow these simple 5 steps and you’ll cut down your waste in no time.   

5 Tips for a Waste-Free Lunch:

• Pack food in reusable lunch containers
• Pack washable & reusable utensils and cloth napkins
• Use reusable BPA free drink bottles
• Control food portions so there are little to no ‘leftovers’ to dispose
• Pack it all in a reusable lunch bag or tote                                                                          

It’s often healthier and frequently more economical.

Many prepackaged snacks are high in sodium, sugar, fat and have empty calories.  

Buying in bulk and putting food in reusable containers means you are paying for food and not the packaging.

Helpful Resources:

• http://kidskonserve.com/ WFL Challenge 20% off w/code ”Schools2011”
• http://www.etsy.com/shop/GirlSundayDesigns Note CSS affiliation in comment box and 20% of the order will be donated to CSS Parent Club
• http://www.reuseit.com/store/lunch-c-248.html
• http://www.wastefreelunches.org/laptop-lunches-coupon.html

Shepherd Farms Community Supported Agriculture

We are happy to announce that our Green Team has connected with the Shepherd Farms CSA (community sustainable agriculture) program to bring fresh, organic produce to the families of Cold Spring School!  Farmer Tom Shepherd launched the organic Carpinteria based farm in 1973, and it has been a trailblazer in the local farming community ever since. The CSA program was adopted in the 1980’s to bridge the gap between the overworked, underpaid “organic” movement, and industrial agriculture.

We currently have 13 families participating in the program at CSS and hope more will join!  It is a great way to experience new and interesting produce, as well as support local agriculture and reducing your carbon footprint.  If you are interested in the program, please read the information below and visit the Shepherd Farms website for more information on programs and events at their farm!

http://www.shepherdfarmscsa.com/

ORDERING OPTIONS:

• Bushel Share: $350/ quarter for 13 weeks recommended for a family of 3-4.  Each box will contain local seasonal fruits & veggies, approximately 10-12 items per box.
• Peck Share: $250/ quarter for 13 weeks recommended for a 1-2 people.  Each box will contain approximately 8-10 seasonal fruits and veggies.

HOW TO ORDER:

To sign up, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with your order information, then go to the Shepherd Farms website contact page at: http://www.shepherdfarmscsa.com/contact/ and fill out your contact information. 

IMPORTANT-At the question box, please indicate you are a family with Cold Spring School.

There will be an envelope in the office for Shepherd Farms CSA, please put your check made out to Shepherd Farms for either your share or peck amount. Since we can only bring this service to the school as a fundraiser, please include a separate check to the Cold Spring School Parent Club for $10.00. Please paperclip the 2 checks together or put both in a small envelope. The last day to sign up and drop off your check for this fall cycle is November 3rd, 2011.
 

Earth Awareness Month

April 2-6th 4th Annual Student Book Exchange and 3rd Annual DVD/VHS Drive for the Montecito Library 

The CSS Green Team and the Student Council present the First Annual Recycling Contest April 27 in the Auditorium

Campus Clean-up Day

Every week, the Student Council Reps and one class clean-up around the CSS campus at recess.

Energy Conservation Day April 20

The classrooms will turn off their lights for the day, use the skylights, and are encouraged to spend a small portion of the classroom time outside in the sunshine.  

To honor Earth Day, Kids Konserve is offering 25% OFF to families

of participating Green Team Schools! 

When ordering use coupon code KKSCHOOLS     http://www.kidskonserve.com/

Think Green Favorites

Favorite Green Organizations

• Art From Scrap Environmental Education: http://www.artfromscrap.org/envedu.html
• Santa Barbara County Recycling Resource: http://lessismore.org/
• Community Environmental Council  http://www.cecsb.org/ 
• Blue Marbles Project   http://bluemarbles.org/
• The Green Business Program of Santa Barbara County  http://www.greenbizsbc.org/

Favorite Green Product Websites

• http://kidskonserve.com/ WFL Challenge 20% off w/code ”KKSCHOOLS”  25% off for the month of April
• http://www.etsy.com/shop/GirlSundayDesigns Note CSS affiliation in comment box and 20% of the order will be donated to CSS Parent Club
• http://www.reuseit.com/store/lunch-c-248.html
• http://www.wastefreelunches.org/laptop-lunches-coupon.html

The Green News

Why Go Green?

Gone are the days of using plastic bags as if they are grown on trees, eco-friendly, environmentally responsible ways of living are “now." As parents, and even for those of us who are not parents, it is our obligation to keep our planet as healthy as we can for future generations. We can all do our part by making simple changes that require very little effort.

The first thing we need to do is become educated about what plastic bags are doing to our planet. Here are two staggering facts and statistics:

• 500,000,000,000 and 1,000,000,000,000 (look at all those zeros!): The number of plastic bags used worldwide each year.

• Over 100,000 seabirds, dolphins, whales, and other sea animals are killed each year by plastic bag use. These animals often mistake plastic bags for food and die after ingesting them because the bags have obstructed their digestive systems. Or the sea animals get entangled in them and suffocate or starve to death as a result.

• 80% of all plastic bags are used in North America and Western Europe. 

• 1000 years: Some scientists estimate that it can take up to 1000 years for one plastic bag to decompose. However, the estimated number of years for a plastic bag to degrade in a landfill is somewhat disputed. Because plastic bags have been around for roughly 50 years, there is no way to know exactly how long this process will take. 

• 100,000,000,000 plastic bags are thrown away by Americans each year. 

• 60,000: The number of plastic bags used in the U.S. every five seconds.

• Roughly 12 million barrels are oil is used annually to make the plastic bags that Americans consume. 

• On average, there are four plastic bags used each day to make lunch for one child. This adds up to almost 1000 plastic bags used each year for one child’s lunch! For this one child, they will use 9000 plastic bags while they are in school from kindergarten through 8th grade!

Green Team History, Goals & Achievements

2008-2009 The Green Team was organized by Parent Club President Carrie Randolph. 

Three realistic goals were set and accomplished:

• Provide every student with a reusable CSS water bottle and eliminate the use of disposable paper cups for hot lunch.
• Introduce the concept of Waste Free Lunch Program
• Introduce a Student Book Exchange with donation of leftover books to local charities.

2009-2010 The Green Team carried on the original goals and added a DVD/VHS Drive for the Montecito Library. 

2010-2011 The Green Team maintained the Waste Free Lunch Program, Student Book Exchange, DVD/VHS Drive for the Montecito Library and added the first Faculty/Staff Book Exchange and a Parent Book Exchange.

2011-2012 Green Team

• Co-Chairs: Connie Doolittle and Katie Szopa
• Faculty Member: Lisa Ishikawa, Mari Callahan
• Parent Members: Erin Featherstone, Jessica Bortman, Leslie Kneafsey
• Student Council Members: Carolina Capua, Oakleigh Kimball, Charlotte Wall, Kailea Hieshima, Kellen Radtkey, Devan Randolph, Kiersten Eggers, Josie Gonella, Taylor Robertson, Elie Largura, Ben Work, Sophie Graham, Caden Hayashida, Alexandra Coleman, Tyler Herzog.

The Green Team developed a master plan with the following goals:

• Make Everyday a Waste Free Lunch Day
• Coordinate Art From Scrap Green Schools Presentations
• Coordinate County of SB Recycling School Waste Audit
• Green Team 2011-2012 Initiative launch at Back to School Picnic
• Encourage Go Green Community Service Events  
• Annual Student Book Exchange April 16-20, 2012
• Annual DVD/VHS Drive for the Montecito Library
• Encourage Parent Club to host a Parent Book Exchange
• Encourage Teachers/CSS Staff to host a Teacher/Staff Book Exchange
• Explore and provide Shepherd Farms CSA at CSS
• Explore the installation of filtered water stations for water bottles
• Explore the creation of a Student Green Team grades 3-6
• Create a “Think Green Hall” leading to auditorium.
• Explore hosting a Green Event during Earth Awareness Month
• Create a Green Team webpage on the CSS websie
• Coordinate Montecito Water District Water Conservation Audit
• Coordinate SCE on-site Energy Audit
• Research and institute a compost system.
• Provide California Education and the Environment Initiative (EEI) Curriculum Teacher Inservice by Judy Sims
• Expand the CSS Garden and incorporate into to classes curriculum based on the EEI Curriculum