It is very important, especially now, that each person in society does their part recycling, and protecting our enviornment. For the past 3 years of my high school career I have listen and learned from the educators who teach me, that recycling should be among some of our highest priorities to take note of during our every day life. They set aside certain days and weeks, and hang posters around the school that encourage us to make that extra few steps to the recycling bin. White out Pollution! Go Green! Save your Enviornment! Sounds like your average school, right? Wrong. Although they are trying to make us aware of the importance of recycling, I have recently learned, that all of those papers and plastic bottles we've been recycling... Make their way straight to where all of the other garbage ends up! I was sitting in my drivers ed theory class when I first witnessed for myself what was going on when nobody was around. It was after school hours, probably close to 4:00 when the janitor walked in and took the garbage from the pail, and tossing it into a large trash can beside her. Then, a moment later she came back in and put the contents of the recycling bin in the same place! I was shocked at what I was seeing, and more then anything I was confused. How could a school so determined to make us aware of the importance of things like recycling, not be doing it themselves? I was determined to figure out what was going on, So I brought it up with one of my teachers. I was expecting her too, to be suprised but instead she looked at me and said, "I know, They do it all the time."
Now I was just mad. I had become very intrested in enviornmental awareness over the course of the last few months, making sure that all of my cans and bottles made it to the recycling bin weather I was in school or at home. Did you know there is over 45 million tons of plastic being produced each year, a minute fraction of which is actually being recycled? I used to be alittle more proud of myself, knowing that I have become so aware, and have made such attempts to recycle myself. But the fact that I belong to a school, whose teachings to us arent ideas they follow themselves is almost disguisting.
If your going to teach young people around you the importance of things like recycling, do me a favor, teach yourselves first.
I would say something to the school. If they don't do anything, I would write to the editor of your local newspaper. (We have a town one, and a county one), "letter to the editors" are read by a lot of people, and I'm sure it might make the right person mad who could do something about this. Talk it over with your parents before you do it though, the school could decide to punish you, and you need to be willing to accept that if it does happen. (For the better good of the enviroment, of course).
~In order to have a better society, we need to CREATE a better society."
What you saw is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to recycling hypocracy.
Real and valuable recycling is only that which happens in a ecconomically suportable way such as aluminum cans.
When they ask you to waste water and time to get labels off of bottles, then they polute by rolling a separate truck to pick-up the result, and the value of the material they collect is less than the cost to collect it...You are falling for some feel good bunk. Most municipal recycling efforts harm the environment more than they help it.
The government can foul up anything.
A Fact is Always Better Than an Ideal.
I would strongly recommend you send this post to your school administerators, janitors, etc.
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Please see my recent blog post, "Genocide and Student Activism": http://www.progressiveu.org/041447-genocide-and-student-activism
I like the idea of writing to the local newspaper. This is something that the community should know about, and it's really sad.
I love abortion. Read more here:
http://progressiveu.org/044921-i-love-abortion-even-if-it-murder
Also write a letter to you school newspaper. That may get other students fired up about it, and get some action taken. Also consider starting a green initiative or enviromental club to insure that your school becomes truly green. I know this post is a little old, so I hope things have changed since you wrote it.
Like what you've read? Well, then here's more:
http://www.progressiveu.org/blog/tricia0711