CERES Summit a Sustainable Success

On Thursday 9 May, 75 students from 12 Greater Dandenong primary schools gathered at Springvale City Hall to engage in a range of environmental activities at the Student Environment Leadership Program Summit. 

The summit, which was delivered in partnership between Greater Dandenong City Council and environmental education centre CERES, provided a much-desired opportunity for students and teachers across multiple schools to come together and learn from each other about the breadth of sustainability initiatives that schools can implement to benefit the environment and the school community.

CERES facilitators equipped students with understanding of environmental issues, skills in idea development and methods to proposing impactful sustainability projects to change makers. These learnings were applied to create a tailored school action plan to implement ideas that were generated over the course of the day. The action plans differed across schools, with some reigniting past initiatives such as their nude food journey or proposing new ideas to leadership regarding improving waste management, installing water tanks and selling reusable items at the canteen. 

Overall, the summit event served as a catalyst for students to become proactive environmental leaders, equipped with the knowledge and motivation to effect meaningful change in their schools and beyond. One teacher reflected that the summit was a “fantastic opportunity for our school to focus on our sustainability journey and to identify areas that need attention. We received expert advice from the CERES staff to create an action plan that we will take back to school.”

For more information on CERES’ Student Environment Leadership Program and other school opportunities visit the CERES website.