Environment friendly learning spaces
Updated by Jenny Macklin, Project Officer, TAFE NSW Access & General Education Curriculum Centre | November 2005
Are you aware of just how much waste you create in your daily work life? Do you think ‘recycle’ before you throw anything away? There are plenty of simple things we can all do to make our learning environments more sustainable.
In Australia alone, we generate approximately 14 million tonnes of waste annually. That means each one of us is throwing out 800kg per annum. Presently, most of this becomes landfill which uses up valuable space and generates greenhouse gases.
Not only will you be doing the right thing by the environment by finding new ways to recycle, but you will also be making a considerable cost saving for your teaching section or organisation by reducing the amount of material being purchased, processed then thrown away.
These websites suggest ways to recycle instead of wasting.
Websites
Monash Green Office Guides
Advice and assistance on reducing the environmental impact of your workplace. Created for Monash University staff, any teacher or office dweller will find this info useful.
Office Care
Plenty of useful tips on how to 'reduce, re-use and recycle.' Use ‘The Audit’ PDF to do a thorough analysis of the sustainability of your workplace.
Sustainability Victoria - Recycling
Provides recycling information for business, industry and personal use. Includes information on recyclable materials, litter and education.
Greenbiz
Find out what other organisations are doing to make their workplaces more sustainable.
PlanetArk
Shows people and business the many ways that they can reduce their day to day impact on the environment, such as where to recycle your printer cartridges, for example. This Australian not-for-profit organisation was set up by the tennis player Pat Cash and international charity campaigner Jon Dee in 1991.
The Australian Mobile Telecommunications Association (AMTA)
Find where to drop off your old mobile phone for recycling. Mobiles, their batteries and accessories contain potentially toxic components and should not end up in landfill.
Reverse Garbage
This not-for-profit co-operative sells industrial discards, off-cuts and over-runs to the public for creative and practical uses, reducing the amount of waste going to landfill.