The Carmel Learning Center is doing a collection of mini-projects which, when combined, make a big difference. These include recycling, reducing paper waste, replacing disposable Styrofoam cups with reusable cups, and adding potted plants to their classrooms.

Daisy Scout Troop 215 decided to help out visitors at the CHS Arts Garden with their project, planting several types of flowers that naturally repel mosquitoes so that the visitors won’t need to use bug spray. The also created a sign to educate visitors about the benefits of using natural forms of bug repellent over bug spray.

Students at Smoky Row Elementary School raised awareness about how easy and fun it can be to reduce, reuse, and recycle even unusual items with their cleverly named crayon reusing and recycling project.

The CHS Art Club added a pergola and butterfly bushes to their new ArtsGarden. The pergola will house a rotating display of recycled art and focus on encouraging over the 5000 students, faculty, and staff at CHS to consider reducing, reusing, and recycling.

Students in the Carmel Middle School Green Team student club provided the Carmel community with 1000 free native Indiana tree seedlings. They educated others, hosting a workshop on how to plant trees and demonstrating how to do so while planting three large trees on school grounds

The Carmel High School Do Something Club decided to do something environmentally friendly this year by planting four large trees at Hamilton County’s River Road Park to provide both environmental and aesthetic benefits to the people of Carmel.

Towne Meadow Elementary School students launched a crayon recycling program at their school to teach about the endless possibilities for reusing and recycling even unusual items. They also chose to purchase recycled crayons from the same factory that recycled their crayons.

Student members of Carmel High School’s Green Team tackled the issues of water and energy conservation through their projects Rain Barrel and Composting Workshops and Switch on the Savings in free community workshops held at the CCS Plots to Plates Community Garden, and in their school.

Prairie Trace Elementary students purchased tree seedlings for each student and educated the school about the importance of trees through posters and morning announcements.

The College Wood Elementary School Recycling Club promoted and facilitated mixed recycling at their school through an educational campaign and the purchase of seven large, wheeled recycle bins, increasing the school’s recycling rates by over 78%!

Woodbrook students educated their school community about the overuse of plastic bags and encouraged the recycling of plastic bags by offering 1 cent for every plastic bag recycled.

The University High School Green Club created a school community organic garden. Using a hands-on approach, students, teachers, and volunteers demonstrate organic gardening techniques and share their discoveries with the community. This is an ongoing project, with phase two of the project also funded through a Carmel Green Teen Micro-Grant