Taking action against climate change

We are Linh and Saria, Year 9 students who run the Fintona Green Team. Through the Green Team we encourage younger students to take small steps towards sustainability, as well as work with teachers and captains to accomplish large-scale projects. At the beginning of 2021, we decided to lead the Green Team because we felt that Fintona’s sustainability could be improved with student-led action, and that’s what the Green Team is aiming for.

The Green Team consists of many different year levels, from Year 5 to Year 11 students attending in support of improving our sustainability at school. In our lunchtime meetings every fortnight, we plan our activities around our audience. Our usual meetings involve a younger demographic, so we like to incorporate hands-on projects and simplify bigger concepts, such as putting up hand-drawn posters around the School, and during lockdown holding plant-based cooking sessions. In a situation where we are presenting for Year 7 and 8 students, we expand on cause and effects of specific environmental issues, whether it be the impacts of global warming or the effects of fast fashion. We have many ongoing projects. In 2021, we put a lot of effort into a campaign for a better recycling and compost system at Fintona and we are thrilled to announce that we have achieved that. We also have many smaller ideas and events that are in the planning stages, such as the Fintona Op-Shop, Inter-school Environment Summit and an Energy Free Day. We would also like to encourage more people to join the Green Team: running the group online during 2021 has been hard, so we are aiming to improve the Green Team overall next year.

Despite facing the Pandemic again this year, we have tried our best to reach realistic sustainability goals. Earlier in 2021, we discussed and worked hard on improving the bin systems at Fintona, from the two-bin system to an increased range of recycling bins, cardboard recycling bins, general waste bins and even a coffee cup bin. We have also focused on smaller things during Remote Learning, such as plant-based cooking sessions with the younger students. A key lesson we learnt this year is that sustainability is ongoing; as mentioned above, we have multiple ideas which we are currently refining so that they can go ahead next year. We have also tried to expand beyond Fintona, by working with other schools across Melbourne, and the Boroondara Council. As leaders of the Green Team, we are always thinking and planning new ideas and have shared a number of home sustainability ideas with many year levels. One critical way to improve sustainability at home is how you deal with your garbage: recycling, composting, and soft-plastic-recycling. Other little things, are buying from sustainable fashion brands, eating more plant-based food, using reusable coffee cups/cutlery, reducing plastic, and joining organisations which are fighting climate change.

Within the Fintona community we have continually engaged and promoted environmental sustainability in a variety of forms. We strongly believe in inspiring students to create their own passion and motives to advocate for a better environment on a global and local scale. By holding open discussions, presentations and being available to answer any questions, we hope we have achieved this.

Overall, we are proud of how much a small student-led group has accomplished this year alone. We are also happy with how the Green Team has encouraged younger students to take little steps towards a healthier Earth. This is only the beginning of Fintona’s sustainability journey, and we look forward to continuing what we have started.

Linh and Saria

Year 9