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EPA's Make a Difference Campaign An Annual Event at at Mechanicsburg Middle School
Initially in May 2004, and again in the Spring of 2005 and 2006, EPA joined with Mechanicsburg Middle School (MMS) in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, to sponsor an "Environmental Challenge Day." The event culminated several months of planning and hard work by EPA, Principal Len Ference, and his staff. More than 300 students and teachers participated in this all-day event, which included indoor and outdoor activities and also involved parents, community volunteers, and EPA staff from Washington, DC.
From using old wooden pallets to building a three-tiered composting bin, to planting a "green garden", to sculpturing "art" from recycled products, to participating in a swap shop, and learning about environmental careers, students learned how to reduce, reuse, and recycle waste as a way to conserve resources and how they can "make a difference" in the environment. EPA staff served as judges for the Waste-Free Lunch poster contest and the solid waste management plan contest.
"My habits will change due to this environmental day," said one student, "because I know that when I pollute, it makes a lot of work for someone else to clean up." "We should do more things like this environmental day to show the rest of the nation and the world that this is a real issue," noted another.
The EPA-MMS Environmental Challenge Day was a consequence of the Agency's Make a Difference Day campaign, launched in October 2003 at a "Youth Environmental Symposium" in San Diego, CA. There, EPA joined with the San Diego Environmental Services Division in sponsoring a series of workshops on environmental issues for students in Grades 7-12. EPA hopes to promote these activities throughout the country; for more information on how you can have a "Make A Difference" Day in your school or community, contact Kathy Bruneske (bruneske.kathy@epa.gov) at 703-308-7893.