About the Green Team

The Sustainability Task Force is a planning committee that organizes community-wide drives aimed at reducing our carbon footprint.  Using broad themes such as water use, paper and forest resources, and energy conservation, the “STF” uses the expertise and inspiration of parents, faculty and other community members to weave ecological thinking into our school’s community service focus.  For example, the PA organizes regular local park clean ups with the Lower East Side Ecology Center.   Speakers from the Lower East Side Ecology Center have hosted workshops on urban composting.   STF members work with any GCS event to help bring a greener focus into the planning stages.

Focusing on more than just recycling, reducing, and reusing materials, the GCS Green Team meets every week during our electives period.  Green Team members in the upper school develop lessons and games to teach younger children the value of environmental stewardship.  Kids organize an Earth Day celebration that brings our year’s theme to the lobby and educates parents and students alike.   Last year our students sold hundreds of CFL lightbulbs to raise awareness about energy use. Students maintain a recycling program that includes insuring citywide compliance and developing alternative programs for reusing materials not collected in New York City.  For example, our Green Team initiated a collection of used pens that are shipped to an artist in California who uses them to decorate cars and make accessories.  The team holds fundraisers to build on our current sustainability work.

The Green Team helps maintain our South Hall recycling center, as well as the campaigns and promotions about Sustainability and reducing our carbon footprint.  Stay tuned for more, or read out Environmental Mission Statement here;