From Deseret News archives:
Olympus Jr. High teens learning, earning green
The students are working on projects to enter in the Lexus Eco Challenge with the potential to win thousands of dollars in prizes.
"When they actually get going on their projects, that's when I see the light bulbs go on," said JoAnne Brown, who teaches ninth-grade honors biology and seventh-grade honors integrated science at the school.
Brown is overseeing the students' projects, which are also graded assignments.
Last year, six of Brown's teams, consisting of five or more students, won $3,000 per group at the regional level in the challenge. Three of the teams then won $50,000 per group in the national division.
The national-winning projects were educating the public on the dangers of radon; getting 1 million people to conserve electricity by turning out lights on Earth Day and creating a Web site spotlighting the school's outdoor classroom and water conservation.
Brown has high hopes for her current teams. "The projects I've seen so far this year have been even more impressive," she said.
One group is encouraging the community to "power shower" to save water. The procedure is rinse, turn off water, soap, turn on water, rinse.
"In Utah, we're like a desert climate," said Tiffany Parkin, 14.
The kids challenged Holladay Mayor Dennis Webb to take a power shower and then measure the amount of water he saved. Webb told the teens he has a Lexus so he would use the extra water to wash his car.
Another group, dubbed the "Green Teens," wants to cut back on paper use in the school. The kids discovered Olympus uses 80,000 sheets of paper — or eight trees — per month. There is a paper recycling program but the students want to be proactive. They are encouraging teachers to use technology and are having a contest to reduce paper usage.
"Our world only has so many trees," said Sarah Cameron, 14.
Over the last two years, there have been almost 50 Olympus teams working on environmental projects for the challenge.
"We have made a big impact in this community, even just cleaning parks and canals," Brown said.
Some of the projects have involved the school's outdoor classroom, which Brown launched. The half-acre plot shows off low-water native plants from the state's different climates. Many local businesses have donated plants or funding.
Olympus has been collaborating with the University of Utah's landscape architecture students to plant vegetation. This year, U. students are designing a building to shade the amphitheater in the outdoor classroom.
