VERMICULTURE • Schools that have cafeterias generate a great deal of food waste that can be reduced through vermicomposting. Organic waste can be processed with worms where garbage is turned into a nutrient-rich, odorless, pathogen-free, organic soil amendment. It can enhance the health of plantsin your home to agricultural crops.

Our classroom bought a worm starter kit from the Waikiki Worm Company to see how much we could reduce our classroom lunch waste.

LUNCH BOX • Plastic and paper bags used for lunch containers can be wasteful. To prevent waste we encourage students to bring lunch boxes that can be reused. Instead of having to throw away the plastic or paper bag everday, use lunch boxes that can be washed and used again.

PLASTIC TRAYS • Currently there are no styrofoam recycling programs and we suggest the use of plastic trays. Instead of just throwing the styrafoam away we can reuse the plastic trays. Using styrafoam hurts the enviorment because it does not decompose well and also cannot be reycled.

MECHANICAL PENCILS • Pencils made of wood don't last very long and also wastes trees. Mechanical pencils could reduce the amount of wood needed to make pencils. Mechanical pencils can be used again by refilling them with lead. Although are made of plastic, plastic can be recycled. Save the trees, reuse with mechanical pencils.

SCRATCH PAPER • Always try to use 2 sides of the paper before tossing in the garbage. Keep a tray of paper that has only been used on one side you will have a source of scratch paper. And be sure to recycle that paper too!

E-BULLETIN & NEWSLETTERS• Newsletters and school bulletins are sent home with students on a regular basis. That means reams and reams of paper are used to create them when today it can be easily sent via e-mail. More students and their families are aquiring internet access in their homes and what an impact we could make if just reduced have of the newsletters sent home in half by sending them via e-mail.