How Our Boarding House Is Going Green
Eddie Lock | Year 12 Boarding Prefect
Since receiving the Neil Smart Environmental Education Grant in 2024, the Boarding House has made fantastic steps towards developing a more environmentally aware community by founding the Boarding Sustainability Club. The club aims to implement waste management initiatives and provide boarders with opportunities to care for new chickens, maintain a veggie garden, and volunteer at the Linde Community Garden in Stepney. Since receiving the grant, we have managed to grow our club from 3 to 14 members.
Part of creating an environmentally aware community is educating boys about waste management, in particular food waste. Part of the grant funded a custom-made ‘home’ for some new boarding residents – a small flock of chickens, who have settled well into city life after making a long trek from various locations across Southeast SA. The chickens have helped reduce food waste by consuming scraps and providing fresh eggs for weekend breakfasts. Caring for the chickens has helped many of our new boarders, who are dealing with homesickness, and linked them with like-minded boys in our community. The chickens, a mix of Gold Sebrights, White Leghorn Bantams and Rhode Island Reds, have sparked interest in poultry breeds and exhibition poultry among the boys, including some of our younger boys, which has been great to see.
The Sustainability Club also launched a Direct Collect 10c recycling system. Many of our boys drink flavoured milks during the week or cans of soft drink on weekends but there had been little recycling happening. With the introduction of these bins, our Sustainability Club has started recycling all 10c recyclable containers, with the proceeds going to a charity of our preference.
Another initiative is the Banish Recycling and Diversion (BRAD) program, which recycles difficult-to-recycle items like blister packs, toothbrushes, plastic razors, lip balm and pens. This program has further reduced waste in the community.
We are so grateful to have received the Neil Smart Environmental Education Grant. The initiatives and projects it has funded will continue to educate our boarders about food waste, recycling of containers and other waste, as well as keeping and exhibiting poultry. To see our boarders showing interest in the Sustainability Club and its projects in only the first five weeks of the term is great to see and we hope more people become involved.
This project was made possible through the Neil Smart Environmental Education Fund, which was generously established by a bequest from the late Neil Smart (PAC 1930) to enable staff and students to undertake special projects in the area of environmental education.
