In celebration of Charleston's "Gateway Greenspace," an eco-friendly area located at the corner of Leon Sullivan Way and Washington Street, Generation Charleston invited area students to participate in an essay and drawing contest.
About 50 students in grades three through 12 submitted essays and about 40 in kindergarten through second grade entered drawings on the theme "What Being Green Means to Me." The winning entries are published here today.
All of the entries will be on display at Charleston Town Center through Sunday.
At a Summer Fun Day event at the Clay Center in July, 50 children were given a seedling to care for and watch grow at their home, courtesy of TerraSalis Garden Center.
Today those children will return to the Gateway Greenspace to plant their seedlings.
Supporting and promoting Gateway Greenspace through volunteer work and fundraising is Generation Charleston's yearlong community outreach project.
Gateway Greenspace is transforming an ordinary asphalt parking lot across from the Clay Center into a slice of West Virginia natural heritage and an attractive entrance to the city of Charleston.
Winning drawing in kindergarten-2nd grade category:
Pick up trash off the ground on the sidewalk. And if you miss the trash can pick it up. Be Green.
Jayley Peters
2nd Grade
Chesapeake Elementary
Winning essay in 3rd-5th grade category:
What Being Green Means to Me
Did you know that turning off a light bulb could save a big amount of electricity, or that when you unplug a phone from a phone charger it still uses electricity if you don't unplug it from the outlet? Saving electricity is like saving the world. Tips to saving electricity are: First, change all light bulbs to CFLs because they save energy and last four times longer. Also, turn off all electrical items when you leave the house.
Here are some more tips that we can all do: On a hot day you could turn your AC up two degrees and on a cold day turn the furnace temperature down two degrees. Doing this could save lots of electricity. Saving electricity is good, but so is saving water. Water helps the Earth stay alive. Without water the Earth would dry up. In turn, all life would be lost.
When you brush your teeth you should turn off the water when doing so. Next, you should also run a full dishwasher instead of cleansing some dishes. You could also take shorter showers, or if you can, take a bath because when you take a bath you only use a certain amount of water but when you take a shower you don't know how much you're using. Also, you could plant trees to make it easier to breathe. Since people are cutting down trees it makes it harder to for plants to produce carbon dioxide, which we all need.
There are some promising signs for the future. We are now constructing houses out of recycled materials and manufacturing cars that run on compressed air or natural materials. We could even power our houses with solar panels. Recycling materials is another good thing to do. When you recycle things it clears up places known as "The Dump." Those are some of my ideas for a future on Earth. How about you?
David Johnson
Fifth grade
Shoals Elementary
In celebration of Charleston's "Gateway Greenspace," an eco-friendly area located at the corner of Leon Sullivan Way and Washington Street, Generation Charleston invited area students to participate in an essay and drawing contest.
About 50 students in grades three through 12 submitted essays and about 40 in kindergarten through second grade entered drawings on the theme "What Being Green Means to Me." The winning entries are published here today.
All of the entries will be on display at Charleston Town Center through Sunday.
At a Summer Fun Day event at the Clay Center in July, 50 children were given a seedling to care for and watch grow at their home, courtesy of TerraSalis Garden Center.
Today those children will return to the Gateway Greenspace to plant their seedlings.
Supporting and promoting Gateway Greenspace through volunteer work and fundraising is Generation Charleston's yearlong community outreach project.
Gateway Greenspace is transforming an ordinary asphalt parking lot across from the Clay Center into a slice of West Virginia natural heritage and an attractive entrance to the city of Charleston.
Winning drawing in kindergarten-2nd grade category:
Pick up trash off the ground on the sidewalk. And if you miss the trash can pick it up. Be Green.
Jayley Peters
2nd Grade
Chesapeake Elementary
Winning essay in 3rd-5th grade category:
What Being Green Means to Me
Did you know that turning off a light bulb could save a big amount of electricity, or that when you unplug a phone from a phone charger it still uses electricity if you don't unplug it from the outlet? Saving electricity is like saving the world. Tips to saving electricity are: First, change all light bulbs to CFLs because they save energy and last four times longer. Also, turn off all electrical items when you leave the house.
Here are some more tips that we can all do: On a hot day you could turn your AC up two degrees and on a cold day turn the furnace temperature down two degrees. Doing this could save lots of electricity. Saving electricity is good, but so is saving water. Water helps the Earth stay alive. Without water the Earth would dry up. In turn, all life would be lost.
When you brush your teeth you should turn off the water when doing so. Next, you should also run a full dishwasher instead of cleansing some dishes. You could also take shorter showers, or if you can, take a bath because when you take a bath you only use a certain amount of water but when you take a shower you don't know how much you're using. Also, you could plant trees to make it easier to breathe. Since people are cutting down trees it makes it harder to for plants to produce carbon dioxide, which we all need.
There are some promising signs for the future. We are now constructing houses out of recycled materials and manufacturing cars that run on compressed air or natural materials. We could even power our houses with solar panels. Recycling materials is another good thing to do. When you recycle things it clears up places known as "The Dump." Those are some of my ideas for a future on Earth. How about you?
David Johnson
Fifth grade
Shoals Elementary
Winning essay in 6th-8th grade category:
What Being Green Means to Me
To me, being green means the three R's: Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. Being green is a way to protect and preserve valuable resources. Some of our natural resources are being used up too quickly. We need to learn ways to use our natural resources better so that people in the future can use them too.
One way to be green is to reduce the amount of certain resources that we use. We can reduce the amount of water we use by using a low-flow showerhead, by reducing your shower by two minutes every day, by turning off the sink faucet when you brush your teeth, and by turning on the washing machine or dishwasher only when they are full. We can reduce the amount of electricity we use by turning off lights when you leave a room, unplug things when you are not using them, turn down your house thermostat, and use energy-efficient light bulbs. We can reduce the amount of gas that we use by carpooling, taking the bus or walking, doing errands in one trip, and by keeping proper air pressure in your car's tires.
Another way to be green is to reuse certain things for other purposes. We can reuse newspaper for wrapping gifts, for packing materials, for art projects, and for shredding to use in pet cages or litter boxes. We can reuse plastic bags for trash bags, tote bags, lunch bags, and packing materials. We can reuse old wood to make things, to burn for heat, for art projects, and as mulch.
Another way to be green is to recycle certain products. We can recycle paper at home by using it as scratch pads, for art projects, and for wrapping paper. Paper can be recycled to make other products such as pencils, product packaging, cardboard boxes, and new paper. Plastic can be recycled by being melted down and turned into other products such as toys, rubber bands, plastic tubs, and bottles. Glass can be recycled by being melted and turned into new products such as glass bottles, light bulbs, dishes, and mirrors. Glass can also be crushed and smoothed and used for art projects, stained-glass windows, and as mulch in your garden.
Being green can mean different things to different people. There are many things we can all do to help preserve our natural resources. Even if you only do one thing to help in being green, it can make a difference. To me being green means doing everything I can to help improve our planet. Every day I try to reduce, reuse, or recycle something.
Conner Hey
6th grade
South Charleston Middle School
Winning essay in 9th-12th grade category:
What Being Green Means to Me
Everyone loves a little alliteration. A bushel of "don't drink and drive," a hint of "right as rain," and a hearty dollop of "go green." This rhetorical strategy has a way of nestling itself within the memory and therefore advancing its cause. Are you about to throw that plastic into the garbage? "Wait," your mind halts, "go green." Your feet shuffle to the left and you drop the waste in a recycling bin.
Alliteration benefits the right kind of slogan. The mind's ability to recognize the catchy arrangement of syllables allows "go green" to become a familiar concept. The familiarity allocates a recollection: It's not hard to remember "go green."
However, what good are words without meaning? For "go green" to give the right impression, the words have to have relevance as well as resonance. The logo refers to the latest attempt to alter daily lifestyle habits that affect our environment, but who would want to think all of that? While hands massage shampoo into the scalp it is easier for the mind to think "go green" and switch the water off. "Go green" gives a very similar meaning. What color comes to mind when one thinks of our planet? The word "go" has connotations of move toward. Together they speak of a desire to move forward and have a healthy, green, lush planet.
A widespread "Go green" trend has recently developed that would make former presidential candidate Al Gore quite content. Web sites, television, news articles and even apparel now feature tips and reminders on the very subject of saving our planet. It's hard to look left or right in any superstore without seeing something sporting a pro-planet, "go green" slogan on the front, or finding a local newspaper without a tip of the week. The popular slogan raises awareness.
While alliteration and trend may be a little childish, they get the message out to the general public. In a world of "what color car will look the coolest," we don't think about which vehicle will present the least amount of gas emission. With the compilation of information on an issue that is more important than "what colors are appropriate for the season" we grow toward a sunny, better tomorrow.
Going green is more than a trend: It's a prayer. It's a prayer for the trees, the animals and the people of our future. It's a prayer that our blossom will become a rose, beautiful, but with thorns that will remind us to protect our environment. You don't have to be an environmental lobbyist to promote change. You can promote change and the growth of our planet by going green: recycling your empty aluminum cans, turning off your water and turning the lights off.
Jessica George
12th grade
Capital High School
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