Zero waste education in K-12 schools

The universal recycling symbol

Zero waste means creating a world where discarded resources are not landfilled but are reused, repurposed, composted, and made available for another’s use.

Zero waste is the future.

The cafeteria is where most of the waste in a school is generated. According to the World Wildlife Fund, K-12 schools in the U.S. generate up to half a million tons of food waste each year. On average, over 70% of this waste ends up in landfills. As a social enterprise working towards environmental education for all, we see cafeteria food scraps as an opportunity to teach your students - the next generation - about the future of waste.

The School Organics Diversion (S.O.D.) Project is a partnership between Vermi Waste and VISE to bring zero waste and environmental education to metro ATL schools. We would love the opportunity to work with your school community!

The goals of the S.O.D. Project are:

A green recycling cart

Waste Prevention & Diversion

We design and implement food waste interventions for K-12 schools including signage, waste audits, and on-site composting programs.

A clipboard with a pie chart on its sheet and a blue data storage symbol to its left.

Data Collection & Reporting

We collect and report school-wide data on waste diversion rates to stay accountable to our school partners and to find opportunities for improvement.

Three characters standing in front of a school building

Student & Stakeholder Education

We educate and engage the entire school community - students, teachers, staff, and families - to foster a zero waste culture in schools and beyond.

Our programming options for your school include:

In-school demonstrations

Bring us to your school! Our 45-minute STEM lessons reinforce the Georgia Standards of Excellence students are learning in the classroom. Some of the environmental science topics we cover include:

  • Where Does Your Trash Go?

  • Our Friend, the Earthworm!

  • The Soil Food Web

We are also open to co-creating other relevant lesson plans with teachers!

Waste audits

We can help your school organize a cafeteria waste audit as a project-based learning activity. These waste audits measure the amount of food waste being produced and can be used to teach students about zero waste, and the activity can even be designed to be student-led. The data collected also can help in planning and measuring the impact of food waste interventions in the school.

On-site composting programs

Composting on-site gives your students unlimited opportunities for environmental education. However, it often takes a lot of work to get the project off the ground and keep it going.

If your school is ready to take the plunge, we can design, set up, operate, and maintain a vermicomposting program for your campus - so that you don’t have to! And if your school has or is planning to build a garden, a portion of the compost created can go towards the project.

Interested?

Fill out our interest form and we will get back to you with more details.