Every other Thursday in room 310, Manual’s Environmental Club hosts a meeting. The club is known for its fun activities to encourage sustainability, like the clothing swap or painting plant pots. Those are two of many ways to practice sustainability.
Environmental Club’s monthly school-wide trash pickups and bi-weekly recycling collection make an impact on the school by reducing waste and litter and creating a cleaner environment. This helps the janitorial staff at Manual. The club also takes on some bigger projects for Manual.
In 2022, the club fundraised $5,000 for one solar panel to be placed on top of the school’s roof. This solar panel sustainably generates electricity for the school, which is helping to reduce our carbon footprint and save money that is put towards the electricity bill. The club is currently raising money for the addition of a second solar panel, hoping to have it installed by the beginning of the 2024-25 school year.
A more recent endeavor that Environmental Club took on was putting together and donating over 1,000 packets of seeds to Louisville’s Metropolitan Sewer District (MSD) in October. MSD then distributed the seeds throughout the community, giving them away at city and state-wide events, including the state fair. This allowed community members to plant trees, flowers and other greenery all over the city. MSD later awarded Environmental Club a plaque regarding all of their hard work.
Even with all of their achievements, Environmental Club is student-run, with the help of sponsor Ms. Angela Page. The student co-presidents include seniors Elise Bowden and Jaci Baker-Green, as well as junior Gavin Cline. All of the presidents have been avid members of the Environmental club since their freshman year. Along with all the hard work they do, they still have fun within the club.
“My favorite activity has definitely been the canoe trip in Beargrass Creek,” Bowden (HSU, 12) said. “Doing activities outside was super fun and engaging.”
“Everyone liked the thrift swap, it was really fun and there were a lot of people there,” said Baker-Green (HSU, 12). Thrifting is sustainable because it reduces waste, repurposing old clothes or accessories that might go to a landfill or wouldn’t be worn anymore. This gives the clothes another life with someone who will wear it and use it for a new purpose.
“I think if we don’t do something to fix the environment, we’re all gonna die,” Nathan Ziegler (HSU, 10) said. As a sophomore, its Ziegler’s second year in the environmental club. He feels very strongly about helping the environment.
“I am for sure staying in Environmental club until my senior year, I love this club and what we do,” Ziegler said. Making an impact on the community is very important to him, which is why he enjoys the club’s hands-on activities, like planting trees and picking up trash. The club plans to continue to better the community.
