On January 19, learning for seventh standard students of Chettinad Hari Shree Vidyalayam was not restricted to the classrooms. They learnt what it takes to care for the environment. They were given over 2,000 neem seed balls and marched off to the Buckingham Canal on Sringeri Mutt Road.
With the help of residents of Thiruveedhi Amman Kovil street, they planted these neem seeds on the banks of the Canal.
“The street where we assembled was clean and lined with trees. The best part of the exercise was throwing the seed balls on to the banks of the Canal. As there was no traffic, we could run around wherever we wanted and have fun,” says Uttara Stefanie, one of the 20 students who were part of the initiative.
In August, with directions from teachers, Ayyammas and school gardeners, these students had made these seed ball themselves.
“I learnt about this particular method of seed ball making from a newspaper article. After reading the article, I got in touch with someone who had mastered this method. In two hours, around 50 students managed to make many seed balls which we stored in a dry space in our storeroom,” says Beevi Kasim, a biology teacher who accompanied the students.
While the material was ready, finding an open space to plant them was hard. That is when a parent posted a message in the WhatsApp group of Thiruveedhi Amman Kovil Street Residents Association (TAKSRA).
“We notified Corporation officials from Ward 126 about the initiative and went ahead with the planting. It was a great success and we hope at least a few trees come up in the future,” says Bala, secretary of the Association.
From making mats from old saris to learning how to regulate traffic with the help of local traffic inspectors, students from Classes 6-12 engage in a plethora of environment-friendly and civic projects.
Entirely chosen and executed by students, these projects are part of the global citizenship project spearheaded by the school. These projects are based on broad topics such as food, water, energy conservation and waste management.
Projects by these students include cleaning up the Chitrakulam temple tank, donating food to local community fridges, making paper bags from used books and distributing them to shops in R.A. Puram.
“Before starting an initiative, we bring in an expert from that field to brief the students about it. So far, 20 specialists from various fields have met the students. We also make sure that these activities blend in with their education,” says Radha Varadarajan, an external coordinator who helps the school with the programme.
As the school has a canteen that serves both breakfast and lunch to students, there is enough vegetable and food waste to place in the composting bin made by students.
“The manure that gets ready in a month’s time is used in the garden at the school. Sometime ago, students visited an apartment complex in Nungambakkam to see how waste was being composted on a large scale. They even got to see what good organic manure looks like,” says Shashikala V., a faculty coordinator.
They plan to sell the environment-friendly goods they have made, at the school fun fest. “They have made bags out of old newspapers and books. They have also made mats from old clothes and pots from recycled plastic. During the fun fest, students plan on selling their wares to their parents and others. The money will be used again to make these environment-friendly products. The manure they help make will be put on sale too,” says Yosida Menon, another faculty coordinator.
