EcoSoc Blog

30 November 2023

On Tuesday this week, members of SPJ’s Energy Patrol Team and SPS’s EcoSoc gathered to participate in a workshop about food waste and sustainability delivered by Chartwells, our new caterers.

The workshop included an informative and illuminating talk as well as a practical element: hummus making!

Some of the key points from the talk that really surprised the pupils were things like the fact the UK wastes the size of eight Wembley Stadiums in food every year!

And that the top four most wasted foods include:

  • Bread (20,000,000 slices a day)
  • Potatoes (4,400,000 a day)
  • Milk (3,100,000 glasses a day)
  • Carrots (2,700,000 a day)

Thank you to Chartwells for taking the time to be with the pupils, further informing their food and eco knowledge, and providing a scrumptious opportunity have some hands-on fun making hummus.

15 November 2023

Last Monday, a group of enthusiastic EcoSoc members and economics students attended the People for Planet Summit at the Royal Institution. Over the course of the afternoon, we attended talks on a range of subjects on all matters concerning the environment. It was truly inspiring to learn about the extraordinary conservation efforts of previous Whitley Award winners, and it was fascinating to hear conservation experts discussing whether or not carbon offsetting actually works. Additionally, we listened to an interview with David Attenborough, discussing the importance of the work of the Whitley Fund for Nature. Overall, it was a highly informative event, and we all thoroughly enjoyed it!

2 November 2023

On Tuesday, 31 October, SPJ’s Energy Patrol Team (EPT) and SPS’ EcoSoc united to play the new carbon literacy card game ‘How Bad are Bananas?’

Considering the carbon dioxide equivalency (CO2e) of everyday food items, from a pint of water to a whole week’s supermarket shop, pupils worked in teams to determine which items had the highest to lowest carbon footprint. All pupils expressed surprise at how high the CO2e is for hot-housed, out-of-season cherry tomatoes and how much land, water and fuel are needed to create 1 kg of cheese. Similarly, all agreed that greater attention to local, in-season diets with reduced meat consumption is vital for quickly reducing carbon output.

Follow-up work is planned for SPJ and SPS pupils around food issues, including a talk from our new school caterers, Chartwells.

EPT and EcoSoc will meet again soon to re-play the carbon literacy game and consider transport issues.

 

5 October 2023

SPS’s EcoSoc and SPJ’s Energy Patrol Team now own the eco-game ‘How Bad are Bananas?’ Based on the book by Mike Berners-Lee, the game considers the carbon footprint of everything.

The accompanying game is a way to consider the carbon equivalency (CO2e) of everyday items and systems by asking which item has a higher or lower CO2e value, e.g. 1kg of oranges or 1 litre of orange juice.

Dr Gaydon (Head of Character, Theology and Philosophy teacher) and Miss Muir (MSc Sustainable Development, accredited Carbon Literacy facilitator) were introduced to the game at the London Schools Environmental Network last summer. Many schools in that network already use the game to initiate conversations around sustainability and regeneration. SPJ and SPS plan to use the game outside of societies in economics, geography, philosophy and PSHE lessons, as the data involved can be analysed in various ways. In economics, the impacts of changing supply chains and factoring in externalities can be calculated; in geography, the physical effect of growing systems and land use can be considered; and in philosophy and PSHE, the implications of how we are living and which changes we should make to live within planetary boundaries can be debated.

Miss Muir completed the ‘Futures we Want’ carbon literacy training over the summer, and we will launch the game after the October Remedy – so watch this space for updates!