Website of the UK government

Going green

Climate change and pollution are issues that affect all of us, and it's up to everyone to do as much as they can to help the environment. There are solutions that can help but everyone needs to get involved if we are going to make them work.

School

As well as doing your bit at home, you can also do some things at school that can help - and get others involved too.

Getting to school

If you usually get driven to school, you could find out if there is another way to get there. Think about:

• using public transport or a school bus. Because they can carry lots of people, taking a bus or a train reduces the amount of CO2 released into the air
• walking or cycling to school. As well as being better for the environment, it's a great way of getting some exercise

If using a car is the only way you can get to and from school, you could find out if you and your friends could set up a car sharing scheme where you all go to school in the same car instead of a number of different ones.

• Walk to school Opens new window

In the classroom

On average, each person in the UK gets through 200 kilograms of paper every year. If you can, try and use both sides of a piece of paper before you throw it away. It's also a good idea to make sure that you are using recycled paper too.

If you're in an IT class or the computer room doing some research, think before you print something out. Do you really need a paper copy of what you're looking at?

You can also recycle or refill printer cartridges, so you could talk to a teacher and make sure that your school is not just putting them in the bin when they run out.

• Get other recycling ideas for the classroom Opens new window

Food and drink

Food and drink

You would be surprised about the number of things you can do at lunchtime to help the environment, whether you bring in a packed lunch from home, or buy something from school:

• if your school doesn't have any recycling bins in the dining hall or canteen, talk to your headteacher to see if you can get some
• if you drink water from plastic bottles, keep and refill them instead of throwing them away
• find out whether your school could turn their food waste into compost instead of just putting it in the bin
  

Taking the lead

If you're really interested in making sure your school is doing all it can for the environment, make a list of the things you would like to change and take it to a teacher.

They will be able to help you with introducing your ideas into school, and might be able to register your school with a nationwide environmental scheme, like the eco-schools programme or the Walk to School campaign.

• The eco-schools programme Opens new window
• Get information on Walk to School Week Opens new window
• All you need to know about climate change and the environment Opens new window

When lessons are over

Being green isn’t something you just do at school. You can do your bit for the planet when you’re at home or if you’re out and about.

• Being greener every day