Over $15,000 will be awarded to secondary schools across the district in the coming months as part of the VSB's new Sustainability Grant Initiative, which challenges students to come up with innovative projects that advance sustainability in their schools and wider communities.

"This is a wonderful initiative that'll support our district goal of becoming one of the greenest school districts in North America," says Ron Macdonald, the district's Manager of Energy and Environmental Sustainability.

Student groups at each school wrote and submitted a detailed project proposal. The ideas were wide-ranging. Some students suggested developing and installing school gardens and installing water bottle refilling stations and dual flush toilets. Others put forward the idea of holding educational "awareness" weeks and events. Some students charted out how their school could replace disposable dishes and cutlery with reusable ones in school cafeterias and hold public garbage audits to highlight how much waste can actually be recycled.

Along with school staff sponsors and administrators, the Sustainability Department and key VSB staff will be working with students to help them plan and execute their projects.  

The initiative will culminate in an event where students have the opportunity to present their accomplishments to their peers, share ideas and challenges, and plan for the future.

To read more about what Byng is planning to do with their grant in the Vancouver Sun, click here.