FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Compost Bin Building Day for Calgary Schools
Calgary, Alberta, June 9, 2009 – On June 12, 2009 Clean Calgary Association, ConocoPhillips Canada, the City of Calgary, Langevin School (Calgary Board of Education), and Bridgeland Community Association will come together to build composting bins for a 2009 school-wide composting program. The bin building will take place from 9am to 3pm at the Bridgeland Riverside Community Centre located at 917 Centre Ave. N.E.
Photo opportunities and interviews are available between 9:45 am and 10:30 am. During this time there will be an opportunity to view compost bin building, compost training session, student presentation and full group interaction during a short morning social break.
Clean Calgary Association, a local environmental charity, will bring 8 new schools into their School-wide Composting Program starting in fall 2009. ConocoPhillips Canada is providing vital support to this year’s program through their June 12th green volunteer event “Building Better Futures” at which twenty employees will volunteer to build 15 compost bins that are essential to the operation of the school program. An additional bin will be built and given to the Bridgeland Riverside Community Association in support of their community garden. ConocoPhillips Canada has funded the June 12th compost training for Langevin school students and teachers to assist in maintaining their bins. Education Matters funded Langevin’s composting program for the 2008-2009 school year. ConocoPhillips Canada will also sponsor an elementary school to receive the program that includes the bins and year long training and mentorship from Clean Calgary. All participants for the day including volunteers and students will leave with reusable lunch containers provided by ConocoPhillips Canada and will be challenged to have litter-less lunches from June 12th forward.
“The customized compost bin systems are a critical element of the school program,” states Clean Calgary Association executive director Natalie Odd. “The contribution made by ConocoPhillips Canada volunteers will ensure that five schools have a system ready and waiting for them in the fall when we start training. This will help ensure a successful and empowering learning experience for the students that will benefit the environment in the short and long term as we decrease solid waste and methane emissions through wide-spread composting of organics.”
From ConocoPhillips Canada Manager of Community Investment and Volunteerism Barb Simic’s point of view “tomorrow’s leaders will need new skills and competencies to cope with increasing social and environmental challenges across a changing competitive landscape. This Building Better Futures day is a holistic employee-engaged initiative that will allow staff to volunteer and help make a difference.”
Langevin School, which participated is the program this past year, will take part on June 12th by attending a composting presentation and sharing their experiences with ConocoPhillips Canada volunteers starting at 9am.
The City of Calgary Community Sustainability Project Team, which is working throughout the city to facilitate community initiatives that reduce our Ecological Footprint, will also be on hand. “Community partnerships are an excellent vehicle for enabling environmental action. The City’s Community Footprint Program and EcoFootprint Calculator are new initiatives that provide a means to determine and measure the actions we take that reduce our impact on the planet” says Jeff Reading, Lead for The City’s Community Sustainability Project team. “Actions such as school-based composting programs provide a hands-on opportunity for staff and students to learn about waste reduction and how they can improve local soil quality. Community compost programs help divert organic material from landfill sites, were their decomposition produces methane gas, a contributor to climate change.” For more information visit www.calgary.ca/footprint.
About Clean Calgary Association
Clean Calgary Association is a local environmental charity that empowers Calgarians to build healthy homes and communities through environmental education, products, and services. Clean Calgary Association operates the EcoStore at 809 – 4th Ave. S.W., works with schools throughout the city and with hundreds of companies to help reduce their environmental impacts. For more information visit www.cleancalgary.org.
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For further information, please contact:
Natalie Odd
Executive Director
Clean Calgary Association
809 – 4th Ave. S.W.
Calgary, Alberta T3B 5C1
403.827.4245 ext. 229
natalie@cleancalgary.org
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