Eco Schools

TDSB Eco Schools

Started in 2003 with 13 schools, the TDSB’s EcoSchools program now has over 400 schools across Toronto participating. This program was developed to raise awareness and help students learn about how to become more environmentally responsible. Each year the Eco team needs to submit an online application and have an auditor visit the school to get re-certified and keep their status as an Eco School.

Briarcrest continues to be environmentally focussed.  At the school, staff help students to learn about and act responsibly towards the environment in the following ways:

- Monitoring garbage and electricity use
- Promoting and educating students about litterless lunches
- Performing classroom eco audits
- Weeding the gardens
- Mulching our trees
- Promoting eco-friendly behaviours by creating posters, and organizing school-wide events like Walk to School Day, Earth Hour, and Earth Day

How can families help Briarcrest be eco-friendly?

We're glad you asked! The biggest impact you can make towards helping Briarcrest be the greenest we can be is by sending your child to school with a litterless lunch every day.

The average child will generate 30 kg (66 lbs.) of waste each school year through disposable lunches. If Briarcrest's 260 students all brought disposable lunches that would add up to 7800 kg (17 160 lbs.) of garbage a year. Yikes!

Litterless lunches are a great idea for many reasons: they're environmentally responsible, they save you money, and they're healthier! Please click HERE for some tips on creating a litterless lunch for your child. 

Our Eco Club worked together with all the students at Briarcrest and created success criteria for what a great litterless lunch should look like. Please click HERE to see if your child's lunch gets a gold star!