BOSTON — The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) recognized students from 63 schools across Massachusetts with Green Team Awards for outstanding environmental stewardship and educational activities. 

 

Green Team is a statewide program sponsored by the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA) and MassDEP to empower students and teachers to help the environment by taking action in their communities. 

 

Green Team classes for the 2023-2024 school year received prizes for their participation, including reusable stainless-steel straws, reusable bamboo utensil sets, water bottle stickers, or paper bookmarks with seeds embedded for planting. 

 

Berkshire County Awardees include:

For more than 20 years, the Green Team program has been open to Massachusetts students of all ages who share in the goals of reducing pollution and protecting the environment with a focus on recycling, composting and sustainability. The 2023-2024 school year marks the highest registration in the program in four years, with 352 classes – comprised of 55,138 students at 318 schools – participating. 

 

"The Healey-Driscoll Administration congratulates all the Green Team teachers and students for showing outstanding leadership during the past school year," said Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Rebecca Tepper. "Green Teams raise environmental awareness and promote waste reduction, reuse, recycling, and composting in their schools, homes, and communities. This is another example of our commitment to expanding partnerships with municipalities to build a more sustainable future."

Students took part in a range of activities, including:

• Expanding school recycling programs
• Collecting textiles for donation and recycling
• Starting a compost pile using organic waste from the school cafeteria and using the compost to grow vegetables in their school garden
• Rescuing unused or unwanted food and distributing to local food banks
• Planting trees and native wildflowers to attract pollinators and songbirds
• Repurposing and reusing materials to make “new” items
• Implementing Zero Waste Days at school
• Conducting science experiments to observe how carbon dioxide affects the atmosphere
• Promoting water conservation
• Making their school drop-off and pickup locations "Idle-Free Zones"
• Increasing energy efficiency in their schools and communities
• Reducing their carbon footprint at school and at home 

These environmentally focused activities incorporated classroom disciplines from the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), as well as reading, writing, art, and other non-classroom, interrelated projects.

Participating classes entered in a drawing for prizes and 63 classes received prizes for their efforts. One school won the grand prize and four schools were recognized for going "above and beyond" with their efforts to promote sustainability and responsible leadership in their communities. Five schools will receive gift cards that can be used for a party to celebrate their hard work and dedication or for materials or equipment that support their Green Team efforts.