"Life Is Not for Show: Why We Are Doing It" - Energy-Saving Month - 2020 in the Central Federal District

Author: Ludmila Zhirina

Translator: Pamela L Hughes, volunteer, USA

In November 2020, more than 20 schools, more than 25 kindergartens and three rural clubs of the Bryansk, Yaroslavl, Voronezh regions took part in unusual excursions, class hours, art events and business games based on resource and energy saving. The children were five to sixteen years old.

The International Month of EnergySaving - 2020, the annual holiday of SPARE organizations, attracted more than 600 children and adults of the Central Federal District of the Russian Federation to its events. Of course, the special conditions of this year allowed events to be held only for a small number of participants at the same time, thus limiting the number of invitees and the possibilities of partnership with energy companies. Therefore, each organization held a series of small but bright and interesting events under the general Program, “Life Is Not for Show: Why We Are Doing It”.

For kindergartens, the methodologists of Viola developed recommendations for educators, held remote consultations, and sent theoretical materials on the separate collection of garbage and its independent processing. In each junior kindergarten group, the teachers told the children that we peelmany vegetables and fruits and throw these peels and other kitchen waste into the common trash can. However, this garbage can be used to feed animals, birds, and earthworms. After a lesson on this theory, children 4-7 years old went home and gathered waste materials to bring to their classes, such as scraps of cardboard, paper, plastic, glue, paints, and fabric.

Educators told the children about the ecosystems most vulnerable to climate change. Children created hand-made models of ecosystems for decorating puppet theater performances. The children learned about the risks of the life of animals and birds from water pollution, deforestation, and loss of drinking water. Each child developed an image of some animal, bird or  fish, created his own carnival costume from secondary materials, and told everyone about what kind of environmental change he dreams of. More than 450 children took part in this program on resource conservation, resource efficiency, and waste management as an important resource.

More than 60 events: classroom hours, presentations and excursions to resource- and energy-saving facilities were held on school grounds. The teachers of the most active schools of SPIRE in the region have developed a common program: “Life Is Not for Show: Why We Are Doing It” including presentations and additional materials on general projects of schools in the region: “Kind Caps”, “Hand over the battery - save the hedgehog”, “Climate Plan for Schools”, “Economical Use of Paper”, and “Saving Energy and Gas in the Kitchen”.

Twelve schools in the region have joined the SPARE Program this academic year. More than 200 schoolchildren in grades 1-10 learned with interest that resource-saving programs are working in neighboring schools. New schoolchildren joining the fight to save the climate began to explore the possibilities of alternative energy sources in the region.

During the classroom hours, the students learned about the possibilities of energy-saving technologies, about the possibilities to travel without harm to the Planet, how to get rid of rubbish in your own e-mail box, and how to keep information waste out of your life.

The schoolchildren also gained interesting practical skills during excursions around their own school as the chefs showed their experiments with an ordinary saucepan in the school cafeteria. It turned out that a 10-liter saucepan on an electric stove heats up to a boil in 35 minutes if the cook closes it tightly with the lid. The same pot takes 60 minutes to boil if the cook forgets to put the lid on the pot. The students wrote down the information of the experience, learned the power of the stove, and calculated the financial and energy losses. They decided to include these materials and suggestions in the school's Climate Plan.

During the Month of Energy-Saving, rural clubs of the Bryansk and Yaroslavl regions began to carry out a campaign on separate waste collection. At general meetings, activists suggested that the handicraft hobby groups decorate the club for the winter holidays using recycled waste and packaging materials. On the territory of three settlements, village clubs and the administration have installed containers to separate waste. Local activists of the SPARE program delivered 7 lectures for residents about the peculiarities of self-processing and recycling of agricultural and construction waste in each courtyard.

The SPARE Month and Energy-Saving Day are becoming national themed holidays!