Sustainability Leaders

Over the past weeks our student body have been voting for our Sustainability Leaders for 2024. Leaders will be selected, and we look forward to assembling the Sustainability Group in the upcoming days.

United Nations Environment Programme – Webinar

Our Year 12 Environmental Action Leaders, Sienna Hoult and Emma Allan, had the opportunity to participate in a webinar organised by the ‘Bayside Climate Action Group’. The webinar featured a distinguished guest speaker, Dr Andrea Hinwood, United Nations Environment Programme Chief Scientist, who is currently based in Nairobi, Kenya.

Dr Hinwood shared invaluable insights on various aspects of sustainability, including transitioning to low-carbon and resource-efficient economies, strengthening environmental governance and law, safeguarding ecosystems and utilizing evidence-based data to inform policy decisions.

What made this experience even more enriching was the interactive Q&A session, where our students had the chance to submit their own questions and engage directly with Dr Hinwood. She mentioned that for our leaders to achieve their goal of increasing biodiversity in the school, we can protect and restore nature by planting back native vegetation in hopes to attract native species and she promoted the work of local and Victorian based programs such as Sustainability Victoria and Clean up Australia Day.

As a result of the webinar, our Student Leaders have started to consider what actions could be taken to help make our school more environmentally friendly, such as modifying our heating/cooling systems, evaluating transport use and replanting vegetation around the College. They also discussed how the school should plan long term for hotter weather, because of climate change.

Foreshore Program

Year 8 students have an exciting opportunity to participate in the Mentone Foreshore Program. During a special assembly, students were introduced to this initiative, which involves volunteering for the revegetation of the Mentone Foreshore in partnership with the Kingston Council. To ignite their passion for environmental stewardship, students watched a compelling video on Coastal Erosion in Australia, which highlighted the importance of conservation efforts in our local community.

We’re thrilled to report that a significant number of students have already applied to participate in the program, demonstrating a genuine eagerness to contribute to environmental preservation. The applications are currently being carefully considered and we’re eagerly anticipating the formation of our team.

Emily Aherne
Co – Sustainability Leader