The Original Green Team-ers

The idea to start a school-wide recycling program and a club dedicated to environmental conservation and service came from the 2012-2013 Brookwood High School Environmental Science classes.  These students make up what is now known as "The Original Green Team-ers."

Pictured above are some of "The Original Green Team-ers" during the 2012-2013 school year. 

(Pictured Left to Right - Juniors Haley Webb, Kurtis Mauldin, Noah Huddleston, Kayla Fomby, and Dylan Hardeman)

The Original Green Team worked hard to lay the foundation for a sustainable recycling program.  They first reached out to the Environmental Affairs Department at Mercedes Benz for help and advice on starting a recycling program.  The Mercedes Benz Plant located in Vance, AL, has a zero-waste policy, meaning they recycle or reuse everything!  They understand the importance of recycling, and were so excited to work with the Green Team to get things started; a community partnership was formed.  Mercedes agreed to partner with the Brookwood Green Team by donating storage containers for collected recyclables to Brookwood High School and servicing the recycling containers on a regular basis.  We decided to collect and recycle plastic bottles and paper; each classroom received a labeled bin for each.  By the 2013-2014 school year, Mercedes was able to deliver the storage containers for our collected recyclables and the school-wide recycling program could finally begin!  We placed the storage bins in the parking lot between both the High School and the Elementary School so that both schools could utilize the bins.  The Green Team is currently working with the SGA and faculty at Brookwood Elementary School to start a recycling program at that school as well.

Environmental Science students pick-up the collected recyclable materials from each classroom on Thursday's of each week.  After only two weeks of collecting paper and plastic, our storage containers were completely full!  Mercedes will pick up our collected recyclables, sort the materials, clean the materials, and then sell the materials to various companies.  Green Team Advisor and Science Teacher, Jennifer Reynolds, says "It's exciting to see the program have such a successful start!  Students, faculty, and Mercedes representatives are all excited and on-board with the recycling program.  It's great to see students working together towards a good cause like improving our environment." 

Thanks to the ideas and hard work of "The Original Green Team," the school-wide recycling program has gotten off to a great start and the Brookwood Green Team was born.  The Brookwood Green Team is an environmental service and conservation club open to any student at Brookwood High School.  The Brookwood Green Team will have fun learning about environmental problems and conservation efforts while participating in service projects throughout the school year to benefit our school, our community, and the environment as a whole.

If you are interested in joining the Brookwood Green Team, then stop by Mrs. Reynolds' or Ms. Barringer's classrooms (Rooms 202 and 203).