Green Schools
Green Initiatives & Clubs
We have been working with the Bellevue East Green Initiative, Sustain Bellevue West, Bryan Urban Ag Academy, Kiwanis K.I.N.D. clubs, Zoo Academy and several others for many years.
Green Bellevue can assist established clubs with initiative development, funding, and expertise. And we can assist schools with leadership and guidance on forming thriving green initiatives and clubs.
Listen to the April 2024 Webinar Starting a Green Club to learn more!
Leadership Opportunities
We support developing leadership with young people. Students that are passionate about environment protection choose to participate on Green Bellevue board of directors in order to keep abreast and help to steer our activities and focus. Many are connected to another Green club and find their participation on the board provides excellent connections and access to funding. We usually have five or more student board members each year from local high schools and colleges.
Earth Day & Arbor Day
Green Bellevue has generated Earth Day and Arbor Day programs over the years. During the “Earth Day” season we have sponsored elementary school art contests and provided venues for the schools to present on their initiatives as well as volunteer to create and deliver programs about the importance of and existence of the green initiatives in our community.
Arbor Day is a special celebration in Nebraska, always held the last Friday of the month. Green Bellevue in partnership with the Bellevue Tree Board selects local schools to deliver an Arbor Day program complete with tree planting.
BPS Composting Kickoff with Hillside Solutions
Pollinator Gardening
Many of our members are gardening experts and regularly work in the city to plant and maintain gardens. In 2021, Green Bellevue encouraged the city of Bellevue to become the first city to be certified as a “Bee City” by the Xerces Society. Since that time we have grown our focus on pollinator gardening and education. We encourage schools to maintain pollinator gardens and teach students about planting and the importance of plant selection and caring for insects, especially Monarch butterflies and bees.
Zero Waste Efforts
Lunchroom Composting – Bellevue West’s FBLA conducted a very successful composting trial program in the winter/spring of 2020 called Project Revitalization and the project won first place in Nebraska and 3rd place at Nationals! This effort, along with the other successful metro area school composting programs, paved the way for the Green Initiative at Bellevue East and Bellevue West Sustainability club to achieve approval for their new lunchroom programs that started January 2024! Currently the funding for this program is generated from school fundraisers as well as grant monies awarded to Green Bellevue from BAE Systems, Northrup Grumman and Omaha Community Foundations. We hope one day lunchroom composting will become fully funded by the school district.
There is a great deal of paper, cardboard and food waste generated at the school that can be easily diverted from the landfill. In fact we’ve seen most of the green initiatives that form within the schools are usually borne from students and teachers growing tired of seeing recyclable and compostable materials thrown in the trash! Green Bellevue can assist with initiative development and funding for Zero Waste programs.
Bringing Focus Back on Recycling – Igniting the focus back on recycling is a perfect initiative for a school club to take on and Green Bellevue can offer supportive ideas and connections. Recycling collection service at the schools has been on and off within the Bellevue school district over the years, based upon funding and the recycling marketplace. In 2018 Green Bellevue donated green containers to Bellevue West and Bellevue East as well as the three junior high schools to use at events. But in 2019, recycling was pulled back when the recycling marketplace suffered the effects of China no longer accepting plastics and the contracted hauler cut back commercial recycling to cardboard only. Recycling pick up returned to the schools in 2022 and can once again be promoted and encouraged.
