(Originally published in the Powell River Peak)Some people look at the trash from a construction project and shrug. Others sigh about the waste.
Ryan Barfoot, sustainability and eco-education coordinator for School District 47, looked at the scrap wood being generated by the reconstruction project at Brooks Secondary School and saw an opportunity.
Edgehill Elementary School staff approached him for help with their Dream Streams project, an environmental display of large wooden salmon to decorate the school. They needed help and materials, and thought that Students for Environmental Awareness (SEA), a student group he runs at Brooks, might want to become involved.
"Instead of seeking new material, we're using the scrap wood," he said. "They get their artwork, and there's less waste going into the landfill. It's a full-circle and holistic approach, and everybody benefits."
More than that, the group is moving beyond Edgehill's original plan, said grade 10 student Katherine Boucher. "We're going to do a dramatic presentation about salmon streams, the importance of salmon and habitat."
Barfoot said that this is only one little project, but it's involving hundreds of students overall. "For Edgehill, it started as an art project," he said. "We're helping them do it in a full way, with a deeper dimension of education and mentorship, with my students mentoring their young students."
Added grade 12 student Erika Davies, "we're learning by teaching, which is cool."
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Barfoot said the teens of SEA are young, but they are both enthusiastic and knowledgeable when talking about cutting-edge subjects such as sustainability and smart development.
Erika said the group is working on an ecological footprint presentation. "We're going to present this around the school," she said. "It's important for students to know how much of the world's resources they're using, and how they can reduce that."
That's a general goal, but they also work on concrete projects, such as getting the school to use more recycled paper. "The problem there is that recycled paper costs more," said grade 12 student Kayle Wilson. "We're looking at doing a fundraiser to help cover the difference."
And grade 10 student Mackenzie Adamson is looking to the end of the year for a paper-related, tie-in project. "There's tons of paper thrown out when school is over," he said. "Maybe we'll have a huge recycling bin and do it as a fundraiser."
The SEA students worked with Canada World Youth to clean up the beach at Tla'Amin (Sliammon) First Nation, and circulated petitions opposing the liquefied natural gas plant on Texada Island.
While the group only has 21 members so far, Katherine said she thinks they're making an impact. "We're spreading the word," she said. "We talk to our friends, and they inform their friends, and it gets out there."
The school district is looking to be carbon-neutral by 2010. This means balancing carbon emissions and power usage with sustainable alternative energy. The group is looking at ways of helping that along, including replacing all light bulbs in the school with more efficient models.
Katherine said she'd like to start a greenhouse in the back of the school. "We could do more composting, too," she said.
Beyond that, Erika said she believes youth need to have more of a say in what goes on in the world. "We should have more of a voice in the community sustainability charter," she said. "People make plans, but they only ask what the current generation thinks."
"We're the ones who are going to have to live with the consequences," Kayle added.
"We want action," Katherine said. "They use a lot of words like hope and desire, but there's not much on action and taking charge."
The group meets a couple of times a month, generally at lunchtime on Thursdays, and more frequently when they're working on a big project. Sometimes, Barfoot said, they just take a break and get out into the outdoors.
"I think that's what fuels people," he said. "Without having direct experience of the environment, it's hard to embrace."
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