Batteries for Cookies

In order to promote proper disposal of batteries (and all questionable recyclables) the Environmental Council hosted another Batteries for Cookies event.  Students were able to exchange their used batteries for cookies as well as more information on the proper disposal of such items.  The improper disposal of batteries could lead to harmful substances being absorbed into the soil and later coming back to harm humans as well as the environment.  We hope that through events like these, people begin to realize the importance of protecting the environment.

Buy Back Our Future

Buy Back Our Future is a campaign organized by the Canadian Youth Delegation with the goal of making the people’s voices heard with regard to environmental issues.  In order to fight back against the industries capable of buying influence and sympathy from the government the Canadian Youth Delegation has begun to spread their campaign to reach as many people as possible.

Today, the Environmental Council brought the campaign to York Mills.  Students and teachers were able to sign letters addressed to the Prime Minister of Canada addressing the issue of binding climate legislation.  Small change donations were also accepted; these letters as well as the change donations will be sent to the Prime Minister as a symbolic means of “buying back our future”.

For more information on this campaign, please click here.

Christmas Cactus Sale

Right before the winter break Environmental Council hosted their second annual plant sale.  This year we had a very successful cactus sale; stay tuned for more Environmental Council events to come.

Global Village Sale

On Thursday, December 15th, the Global Village Sale was back once again with a variety of great holiday gifts from accessories to cultural items, and many more. The Global Village is an initiative that supports grassroots artisans in developing countries worldwide. The variety of ethical items attracted the attention of many staff and students, which led to lots of purchases. The sale was a huge success; we all gave a helping hand to third-world countries.

Waste Audit Presentation

On Thursday, November 24th, the Environmental Council performed a Waste Audit Presentation to educate students about proper disposals of various items. An interesting skit was put on by members of the council to address and discuss the issues of improper placement and the locations of garbage/compost/recycling bins around the school. Students volunteered to identify the correct category a particular set of waste belonged to.

Earthlings

This week, the Environmental Council hosted a powerful movie screening for the entire student body.  The movie shown is called Earthlings.  It is a documentary about man’s reliance on animals for the purpose of producing a profit.  This gave students a vivid image of what really happens behind the scenes of some larger corporations.

The film can actually be found on YouTube, or right here.  We definitely recommend this movie to anyone and everyone, this is a must see.

Walk to School Day

The Environmental Council hosted a Walk to School Day in hopes of encouraging students to embrace the many advantages of travelling by foot.  Students had a chance to make their pledge to walk to school, and were rewarded with a special one-of-a-kind ribbon provided by the Environmental Council.

Check out the gallery for more pictures of all our events!

Waste Audit 2011

On October 14th we had our annual waste audit!  We are pleased to report that food waste proportions have gone down since the last audit.  And with the addition of our new compost system, hopefully we can further encourage correct bin usage and reduce waste.  Keep up the good work YMEC!

Results of this waste audit can be found here.

Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup 2011

On September 20th the York Mills Environmental Council participated in the Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup.  Partnered with our younger Windfields Junior High School Eco-Team members, we cleaned up the local Windfields park.  Meanwhile, people all around Canada swept the shorelines in hopes of rehabilitating the littered shorelines.

To see more photos visit the photo album.

The Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup happens once every year, and if the shoreline is out of reach you could always clean up your local park; like we did! For more information on the cleanup, click here.

Environmental Council General Member Application 2011-2012

The Environmental Council is accepting new members of all grades!

You can either pick up an application form outside of Rm113, or you can click here to download the application, fill it out, and send it back to this email:

[ymcieco@gmail.com]

We prefer the second method because it saves paper

Applications are due on Friday September 23rd, 2011. Interviews will be the following week so check your emails to make sure you don’t miss your interview!