An idea for our planet

Så fungerar det

Vi vill föreslå en förändring och få andra att vilja vara med. Ett förslag säger vad problemet är, vad du föreslår och varför det hjälper: I suggest that we … This would help because …

Tänk på läsaren: rektorn eller elevrådet vill veta vad det kostar och hur det ska gå till. Svara på en invändning innan den kommer: Some people might say it's expensive. However, … Avsluta artigt.

I suggest that we stop selling drinks in plastic bottles. Det betyder: jag föreslår att vi slutar sälja drycker i plastflaskor.

The school that said no to plastic

Three years ago, the pupils at a secondary school in Swansea, Wales, did a simple experiment. For one week, they collected every piece of plastic that was thrown away in the canteen. At the end of the week, they put it all in the school hall. The pile was taller than the head teacher. "We were shocked," says Megan, who was fourteen at the time. "Most of it was bottles, sandwich packets and plastic forks. We used them for five minutes and then threw them away." The pupils formed an eco-committee and wrote a plan. First, they asked the canteen to stop selling drinks in plastic bottles. Instead, the school put in three water fountains, and every pupil got a metal water bottle with the school logo. Then the canteen changed to real knives and forks, which are washed and used again. Finally, the pupils started a weekly "swap shop" where people can exchange old clothes, books and sports equipment. Not everyone was happy at first. Some parents worried about the cost, and some pupils complained that the water fountains were too slow. However, the committee found a local company that paid for the bottles, and after a few weeks most people got used to the changes. Today the school throws away eighty per cent less plastic than before. The idea has spread to four other schools in the area, and Megan, who is now at college, still visits to help. Last year the pupils also planted a vegetable garden next to the canteen. "One school can't save the planet," she says. "But if lots of schools do small things, it adds up. And it shows that young people can change things."

Källor

1. Kursplan i engelska, Lgr22, Skolverket