Illinois Green Schools Project
Sustainability Workbook
COMPLETE EACH CHAPTER AT YOUR OWN PACE
WITH ASSISTANCE FROM YOUR IGSP MENTOR
Available to all IGSP Participants
The IGSP Sustainability Workbook prompts users to:
- Take stock of their school's current practices, infrastructure, and culture.
- Start productive conversations with other school stakeholders.
- Develop an action plan for a resource use reduction project that addresses their school's unique goals and needs.
Chapter One
Self-Assessment
This basic self-assessment provides green teams with a holistic framework for school sustainability. Assess school sustainability across Three Pillars:
Based off the US Department of Education's Green Ribbon School Program and their Three Pillar Framework, the IGSP Self Assessment contains a variety of metrics divided into three categories: Environmental Impact, Health and Wellness, and Environmental Literacy.
SNEAK PEAK OF THE SELF-ASSESSMENT
TALLY UP YOUR SCORE TO IDENTIFY POSSIBLE FOCUS AREAS
Gain full access to the complete self-assessment by signing up as an IGSP school!
Chapter Two
Choose a Path
Once a green team has completed their Self-Assessment, it's time to identify a topic for your sustainability project. All IGSP Sustainability Projects must address at least one of the Self Assessment's metrics from the Environmental Impact section and one metric from either the Health & Wellness or Environmental Literacy sections.
The environmental Impact section of the Self-Assessment focuses on reducing impact in Energy, Water & Grounds, Waste Management, and Alternative Transportation. Execute one of our Energy, Water, or Waste Walkthrough Audit Guides to learn more about your school's infrastructure and operations.
The IGSP Building Walkthrough Guides help schools dive deeper into
the areas of focus identified during the Self-Assessment.
Gain full access to all three guides by signing up as an IGSP school!
Chapter Three
Project Outline
Once the green team has taken stock of their school’s infrastructure, operations, and culture, it’s time to outline their Green Schools Project. This outline template helps the user create a comprehensive blueprint of the essential components, procedures, goals, and milestones of their IGSP project. A well-defined outline clearly shows the structure of a project and sets green teams up for success.
USE THE IGSP PROJECT OUTLINE TO DEVELOP
A PLAN FOR A HOLISTIC PROJECT, INCLUDING:
IGSP MINI GRANT
At the end of the outline, you will find an optional IGSP Mini Grant Request section. Participating schools can request funding up to $1,000 to cover project costs. Funding will be rewarded based on relevance to the program's mission and grant review rubric. The grant review rubric will be available to all IGSP participants. If your school does not plan to request funding through the Illinois Green Schools Project, you may leave this portion blank.
DON'T SWEAT IT
Every school's sustainability journey is unique and comes with its own set of challenges and perameters. If you are unable to complete the IGSP sustainability workbook by the January 31st deadline, that is okay! You can take as long as you need to complete the first stage of the program; you can always submit your sustainability workbook the following year!
Have additional questions?
email us at greenschools@illinoisgreenalliance.org