5.14.24 - 8th Graders’ Petition to Sudbury Public Schools – Compost the Food Scraps
Sustainable Sudbury
Here is a petition from 8th Graders wanting the SPS to compost food scraps in all the SPS kitchens and cafeterias. Sustainable Sudbury supports this. Please sign it and share it with others.
We are a group of 8th grade students at Curtis Middle School in Sudbury, Massachusetts who are working on a Civics Action Project that will combat food waste locally by requiring composting. In the Sudbury Public Schools, many of us have seen first-hand the benefits of composting at home, including waste reduction, soil enrichment, and the creation of a healthier environment. It’s time we extend these benefits to our public schools.
In Massachusetts alone, organic materials—primarily food scraps—make up over 25% of our waste stream (MassDEP). By implementing composting programs in all Sudbury Public Schools, we can significantly reduce this waste and teach students valuable lessons about sustainability.
Food waste contributes to 58% of methane emissions. Importantly, composting not only reduces landfill use but also decreases emissions of harmful greenhouse gases such as methane, which is 25 times more harmful to the environment than carbon dioxide. Further, the rich soil produced from composting can be used in school gardens or donated to local farms.
At Curtis, like many other schools, we see an overwhelming growth of food waste. The majority of the trash that we create in the cafeteria is wasted food. In Sudbury, Haynes Elementary School has seen a significant decrease in the amount of food waste they produce after implementing composting in their cafeterias and kitchens.
We urge the Sudbury School Committee and Superintendent to take action on this issue. Composting must be made a standard practice in all our public schools for the betterment of both our community and planet. Not only do the Sudbury Public Schools have great potential to decrease the amount of food waste we produce but the lessons and values students will learn are important, as Sudbury values action to sustain our environment.
In Article 58, in it’s “Climate Emergency Declaration”, the Town of Sudbury recognized the vital need to address climate change. The Declaration states, “There remains a need and opportunity for Sudbury to accelerate its efforts in addressing the urgent challenges posed by climate change, including by refining goals, facilitating the sharing of reliable information, and establishing ways to assess and communicate community-wide progress.” Composting in the Sudbury Public Schools, not only connects with the community’s goal to address climate change locally, but also acts as a stepping stone for further climate action.
Importantly, by implementing composting in Sudbury Public Schools, students will experience first-hand the benefits of sustainability practices in their daily lives. In addition, by implementing these practices in the schools for Sudbury’s youngest generation, our Town’s future will be aligned with Sudbury’s plans to address climate change, as emphasized in the Climate Emergency Declaration.
Please sign this petition if you believe in fostering sustainable practices within Sudbury’s education system. Together we can make a difference!
Thank you! – Emily Anderson, Elise Airiau, Elsa Milburn, Eva Glenn, Kristina Sargsyan, and Aiyana Allen
Please use this link to sign the petition:
https://www.change.org/p/requiring-composting-in-sudbury-public-schools
Tom Yelton