Coca-Cola Torchbearer - December 23rd
Name:
Taylor Balkwill
Hometown: Leamington,
ON
Carrying Torch in:
Amherstburg,
ON
In grade six,
Taylor Balkwill organized a program whereby the foil juice packets used on a
daily basis by her classmates,
could be collected,
cut,
washed,
and sewn into usable handbags for sale.
The first year of the program Balkwill's
school
collected one garbage bag per week.
Now they collect two garbage bags per day,
approximately 144,000
packets per
year.
This has greatly reduced the amount of garbage at Balkwill's school.
To promote her program,
Balkwill
prepared advertising,
information
and price
lists.
The Board of Education
also requested
her presence at the ECO Schools Conference to display,
sell,
and encourage other schools to become environmentally
friendly.
Balkwill has contacted other local schools to encourage participation.
To date,
sales of the handbags have allowed Balkwill to purchase native Canadian trees to
establish her school's
first
school nursery.
The handbags have also added to the funds for her school's ECO friendly
classroom,
pond and wetland.
In addition,
her ECO team received a $7,000
grant for an environmental proposal they submitted.
Balkwill's
aim has been to teach younger students to take care of the environment.
She has taught multiple
younger
students about the program she once started.
As Balkwill
moves on to high school,
she plans on creating a greater bond
between her elemetary school and her high school.
She hopes together they can strive towards a cleaner environment.
