Solorio Academy High School: Community Green Space & Waste Reduction
- Project Type: Path to Net Zero, Habitat Restoration, Native Plant Garden, Outdoor Learning Space, Waste Reduction
- Students: 25
- Staff: 2
- Mentor: Jan Clarence Concepcion, HUSArchitecture
- Location: Chicago, IL
- Grade Levels: High School
The Project
Students at Solorio Academy High School developed a plan for improving the campus green space and involving the community in bringing the existing plant beds, pollinator garden, campus trees and future greenhouse back to life. The ultimate goal is to create a space where students, staff and families can learn and socialize outside and increase the shade on campus in the distant future.
Students also completed a waste audit at the beginning of the year and used the data to launch some education and community event campaigns to highlight some of the successes and challenges facing the Zero Waste Program at Solorio.
The Process:
Greenspace Initiative
- Identify problems:
- Reading garden has planters that are not cared for and is an underutilized outdoor space.
- Campus has some restored habitat but very few trees to provide share and comfort.
- Only Zero Waste Ambassadors help maintain our greenspaces - little to no community involvement with other students, staff or families
- Brainstorm and Develop Solutions:
- Plan a series of work day events and invite community members to join.
- Survey garden for what needs to be done. (restore planters, set foundation for greenhouse, build greenhouse, remove old/dead plants, plant NEW plants)
- Consult CPS Master Gardener, Iliana Epstein and Principal about garden plan
- Generate a list of supplies needed for work days; use grant funding and school funding to get supplies.
- Advertise work days to other student groups
- Advertise work days at parent meetings.
- Work events scheduled for: 10/13 (native tree planting); 3/29 and 4/28
- Community plot “adoption”
- In the future, Solorio Plans to have different student groups, parents, staff adopt planters in the reading garden to care for
- Native Tree Planting
- Work with Morton Arboretum to survey the land and determine the best location and species for their campus.
- Recruit volunteers for tree planting day
- Work with building engineers to plan ongoing watering of tree specimens.
The Process:
Greenspace Initiative
- Identify problems:
- Reading garden has planters that are not cared for and is an underutilized outdoor space.
- Campus has some restored habitat but very few trees to provide share and comfort.
- Only Zero Waste Ambassadors help maintain our greenspaces - little to no community involvement with other students, staff or families
- Brainstorm and Develop Solutions:
- Plan a series of work day events and invite community members to join.
- Survey garden for what needs to be done. (restore planters, set foundation for greenhouse, build greenhouse, remove old/dead plants, plant NEW plants)
- Consult CPS Master Gardener, Iliana Epstein and Principal about garden plan
- Generate a list of supplies needed for work days; use grant funding and school funding to get supplies.
- Advertise work days to other student groups
- Advertise work days at parent meetings.
- Work events scheduled for: 10/13 (native tree planting); 3/29 and 4/28
- Community plot “adoption”
- In the future, Solorio Plans to have different student groups, parents, staff adopt planters in the reading garden to care for
- Native Tree Planting
- Work with Morton Arboretum to survey the land and determine the best location and species for their campus.
- Recruit volunteers for tree planting day
- Work with building engineers to plan ongoing watering of tree specimens.
What’s Next:
The garden will be an ongoing project. Once the greenhouse is built and the plots have been reestablished - the garden will be a project the the Zero Waste Ambassadors maintain and share with the community for years to come.
In the next few months, Solorio will work on getting the greenhouse installed and built properly so that it can be secure and functional for many years to come.
Zero Waste will also continue to do bakefest events in the future! This has become a regular tradition that we they will carry out throughout the spring. If the food garden is successful, they would like to expand bakefest to COOKFEST and teach students how to cook vegan meals using vegetables from the garden.