Environmentalism at Synergy

    Here at Synergy, everyone cares about our environment and community.

    The campus is full of plants. There are trees on the playing yards, hanging gardens in the alley and a sidewalk garden as well. The plants are almost all native and drought resistant, and they absorb rainwater instead of letting it go down the drain. To encourage students to take leading roles in helping the environment, there are out-of-school events to expose everyone to open space and wildlife. Once a year, there is The Garden Project, where students drive to a farm and water, pick and plant organic vegetables. The farm feeds people in need and the nearby community, as well as providing green job training. The school even has an Eco Team who promote environmental awareness and action.

    7th grader Kate Gross, a long time member, details, “The Eco Team makes sure that the whole school is aware of global warming and how to conserve fossil fuels by educating everyone with occasional meetings and posters. Synergy also has a roof covered in solar energy generators. Parents try to pack their children organic and eco-friendly lunches to minimize the amount of waste we produce. Compost and recycling bins are used in our everyday life. At the end of lunch, every student is told to pick up a piece of garbage or anything else that does not belong on the yards. Synergy has had an eco team working to preserve the urban environment for over 13 years. We believe in a healthy, clean, and green community.”

    Synergy’s dedication to environmentalism has received recognition from the city. On the third of May, 2017, a small group of students who largely contributed to keeping Synergy clean went to City Hall to accept an award for a green and eco-friendly school of young  Eco Heroes. Synergy was one among four schools (Bryant Elementary, Jean Parker, and Marina Middle School) that were chosen from San Francisco. Two 6th graders as well as Annie (the 1st and 2nd grade teacher and Eco Team teacher) wrote small speeches and told all of the other schools and some environmental workers from City Hall about Synergy’s efforts.

     At the award ceremony, everyone was served lunch in a large room. The tables had centerpieces made only with recycled material. After everyone had first and second fillings, Mayor Ed Lee’s assistant, Tyrone, talked about saving the earth and how children are pioneers for the future. Next, representatives of the Department of the Environment began to talk about how the schools help the earth. Tamar Hurwitz talked about Synergy. Then, students and teachers from each school stood in front of everyone and gave a small speech, recited a poem, or did a group chant. After the ceremony, each group of students from the separate schools took a picture with Phoebe the Phoenix, the San Francisco Department of the Environment’s mascot.

      At City Hall, everyone learned about how San Francisco is the first city in the world to have compost bins as a part of everyday life, that students are the ones that teach their family and friends about the green way of life, and most importantly, that what we do to our earth now will affect it in the future. What is good for the environment is good for us as well, and for the health of our earth.

– By Atessa Anoshiravani, Synergy Middle School Student