CALLING ALL 'ENVIRONMENTAL EAGLES'
State Agencies Invite Massachusetts Students and Teachers to Join 'The Green Team'

The Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EOEEA) and Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) today invited children across Massachusetts to join The Green Team, an interactive club for K-12 students intended to empower them and their teachers to help the environment with recycling, clean air and climate protection lesson plans and activities.
     
"Our children hold the keys to the future," said Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Ian A. Bowles. "We want to help them unlock a cleaner environment, healthier neighborhoods and a better quality of life."
     
Green Team participants receive educational tools, including classroom posters, lesson plans, environmental protection tips and suggested activities. As they complete activities, classes advance through three levels of participation.
     
Each class that takes the Green Team Pledge receives a Certificate of Recognition and is eligible to win great prizes, including mini-recycle bin planters, assembly presentations by recycling professionals, participatory musical concerts and more. The more a class puts into the effort, the better the prizes it will qualify to win.

"When we protect our earth, air, water and natural resources, we also protect our health," said MassDEP Commissioner Laurie Burt. "A little effort can make a big difference for our environment and our future."

Students, teachers and school recycling coordinators may join the Green Team by clicking on  http://www.mass.gov/dep/recycle/reduce/kidsteac.htm, where you can find a website that provides additional program information and resources. To learn more about state efforts to protect the environment, visit www.mass.gov/dep. 

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