Waste District teaches students about environment

Monroe County’s Solid Waste Management District is working to spread the word of maintaining a green environment.

The district offers free programs that teachers can order for their classes to educate students about preserving the environment.

Elisa Pokral, media and education director at Monroe County Solid Waste Management District, said the district’s origins go back 23 years.

“In 1990, Solid Waste Management Districts were formed by HB 1240 to manage waste in Indiana,” she said. “The mission of the ‘Go Green’ District, the Monroe County District, is to secure a healthier environment in south-central Indiana by eliminating waste, using recyclable materials and promoting sustainable materials practices throughout our community.”

Pokral said they achieve this mission by working with Monroe County residents, businesses and community organizations.

Another part of the district’s job is to provide education on these sustainable practices. Pokral and the district’s Executive Director Larry Barker lecture students in and around the Monroe County area.

“I do primarily kindergarten through sixth plus some middle school and a few high school presentations,” Pokral said. “This is for Monroe County and Richland Bean-Blossom schools. On average we do around 140 presentations a year.”

The free classes teachers can order include “Earth’s Colors,” “Economics of Recycling,” “History of Trash” and “Worm Magic 1: How to Compost and Why.”

Though the classes are aimed primarily at students in school settings, the district also teaches adults and other community members.

“The district educates the community to ‘use it less, use it again, use it forever,’” Pokral said.

Pokral said she firmly believes in the message the program aims to teach.

“Through traveling in the U.S. and overseas, and working in international education, I have been fortunate to see many beautiful places, but also some that are not so beautiful,” she said. “I saw how those places that took care of the environment were lovely places to live and work.”

Pokral said during the past years, she has seen a decrease in use of the sessions. Part of the reason is teachers have to instruct other things including literacy in the time they could otherwise use for the sessions.

“I do more of the presentations in the afternoons, which means I have fewer days to work with,” she said.

However, she also believes the courses still fill an important gap in science teaching.

“While some types of pollution seem to be covered in curriculum, the solutions often are not,” she said. “Environmental literacy is the key to healthy communities. The Earth is our life support system.”

Pokral said the district has reached out through other means to teach kids. They have collaborated with the local PBS program “The Friday Zone” to teach responsible usage and environmental protection.

“The positive messages ‘The Friday Zone’ shares will help children and adults be good stewards of natural resources and keep Indiana healthy now and in the future,” she said. “The district’s vision is an environmentally literate citizenry of lifelong learners who are good stewards of the Earth.”

Though getting through to students can be challenging, Pokral said she knows it is important to keep trying.

“Whether I see myself as a boulder or a pebble that gets thrown into a pond, the result is ripples, ever expanding ripples of ideas and actions,” she said. “I see the enthusiasm of responsible citizens in earth stewardship. I receive thank-yous from children, parents, teachers and other community members."

“It is wonderful to know that people are listening and that the district is motivating many people to take action and love the world with
action.”

Follow reporter Stephen Kroll on Twitter @stephenkroll1.