The Sustainable School Committee

WHO ARE WE?

The Sustainable School Committee is made up of teachers, students, parents and staff members, all united by a common vision: building an environmentally friendly school environment, promoting eco-responsibility, and raising awareness about importance of sustainability. Together, we aspire to be a model of positive change for our school and community.

 

THE ORIGIN OF THE COMMITTEE

Long involved in sustainable development, the International French School had a Sustainable Development Committee made up in particular of teachers and whose mission was to support the school’s projects meeting the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) established by the United Nations.

At the start of the 2022 school year, at the initiative of the school management and the Management Committee, a group of parents mobilized on ecological themes was formed, who worked on numerous actions during the school year, in support for school initiatives. It is quite natural that these two structures merged into a single entity, the Sustainable School Committee.

 

FOR WHAT PURPOSE?

School prepares our children to integrate into today’s world and to anticipate the world of tomorrow. The development of their skills and knowledge, but also the understanding of their role and responsibilities in society is therefore at the heart of the educational project. The educational approach is thus closely linked to sustainable development, as are the efforts made on the internal management of the establishment (buildings, consumption, energy, water and waste management).

This is why the school has fully adhered since 2022 to the sustainable labeling process of the AEFE – EFE3D – or “Etablissement Français de l’Etranger en Démarche de Développement Durable” whose objective is to “integrate sustainable development in their educational practices and their overall functioning”. Thanks to the efforts made, the establishment obtained the “EFE3D – level 2” label in 2023 (school with a level 2 sustainable development approach); the committee will continue to make further progress school in this approach.

 

 

OUR GOALS

• Educate for a more sustainable future: we organize workshops and educational activities to raise awareness among students and adults about environmental issues.

• Reduce our carbon footprint: we seek to minimize our environmental impact by encouraging eco-responsible practices within and outside the establishment, such as reducing waste, consumption that respects our environment, and the use of energy. renewables, etc.

• Promote biodiversity: we raise awareness about the preservation of local fauna and flora, and encourage the creation of green spaces in our establishment.

• Collaborate with the local community: we build relationships with local organizations, eco-responsible businesses, and other schools to exchange ideas and best practices in sustainability.

 

 

OUR ACTIONS

Actions carried out in 2022-2023:

Here are some examples of actions carried out during the year 2022-2023 which could be renewed:

• raising awareness of food waste by weighing canteen waste,

• the creation of an Air Conditioning Charter to limit the use of this energy-intensive system,

• the creation of zero-waste workshops, to raise children’s awareness of ecological alternatives in everyday objects,

• the dissemination of a “climate culture” in the school, in particular by the distribution of summaries of the IPCC reports when they are released, or by the organization of “The climate fresco” workshops in the school,

• the implementation of waste sorting and recycling (carried out by the company The Recycler),

• school trips to NGOs specializing in artisanal recycling, and to Tanzanian schools to encourage cultural exchanges with local society.

 

Projects for the year 2023-2024:

The committee aims to resume and strengthen the activities implemented in 2022-2023. New projects may be added to this, for example:

• Better integration of eco-delegates (students) in the management of the committee.

• A sustainable approach applied to the organization of school events, so that eco-citizen values are transmitted and in order to reduce the negative impacts (waste) of these events.

• The installation of solar panels, accompanied by an ever more detailed study of the school’s resources to reduce its water and energy consumption.

• The promotion of unifying events around the environment: Zero-carbon DNA; the challenges of the seconds; trip to Johannesburg for exchanges of good practices, etc.