MARCH 2 • 2023 | 19

significant impact.”
This dedicated startup 
group of students met every 
week, starting in the fall, to 
design educational materials 
and logistics for the event. 
“My favorite part was 
the teamwork that made it 
happen. It wouldn’t have 
been possible with just one 
person!” said sixth-grader 
Maya Weingarden, who 
created an educational video 
for the whole school with 
fellow sixth-grader Ally 
Berman. 
“It was difficult getting 
everyone ready for the 
composting day. We had 
to learn what could be 
composted. I was surprised 
to learn that dairy and meat 
can be composted in certain 
places,” said Audrey North, a 
fourth-grader on the Green 
Club. 
The Green Club students 

hope that their efforts 
won’t end at Compost Day. 
The aim of the club is to 
empower students to make 
a positive impact within 
their community and also 
to inspire other kids in their 
school. The group will pursue 
a new project after Compost 
Day is completed, as part of a 
larger effort to give students 
more chances to take 
environmental action. 
Students are acutely aware 
of the climate crisis. A 2021 
survey of more than 10,000 
Gen-Zers and Millennials 
across 10 countries asked 
respondents about their 
thoughts and feelings related 
to the climate crisis. More 
than 50% reported feeling 
climate anxiety, grief and 
powerlessness, and more than 
45% stated that these feelings 
negatively impacted their 
daily life. 

When the call went out for 
students to join a volunteer, 
environment-focused group, 
the students at Hillel Day 
School showed up with 
concerns about climate 
change, but they also had 
ideas on how to improve 
their school’s environmental 
footprint. 
“I was already thinking 
about ways to help the Earth, 
because we only have one 
Earth,” said fourth-grader 
Asher Meisner. “When I 
heard about the Green Club, 
I knew I had to join,” he 
added. 
Students are increasingly 

passionate about the 
environment and the climate 
crisis. Hazon’s Amit Weitzer 
says, “To build toward 
meaningful change, it is 
critical to support passionate 
individuals [students and 
teachers] with strong 
structures and systems, 
so that the work doesn’t 
rely on a particular group 
of individuals but can be 
sustained and can grow over 
many years as a part of the 
identity of the school.” 

Laura Pasek is the faculty adviser for 

the Green Club at Hillel Day School. 

continued on page XX

Are You Looking to Make 
a Change at Your School?

Hazon Detroit has these top four recommendations 
for schools looking to make positive impact on the 
environment:
• Create opportunities for youth leadership and for 
student-voice and priorities to impact school policies 
and programs.
• It is OK to start small — take stock of where you 
have influence and power — and make changes there!
• Designate at least one (ideally two) dedicated green 
staff leader(s) with a formal responsibility to steward 
this programming (rather than this being a responsibility 
on top of an already full plate of responsibilities). 
• Examine your existing operations and programs 
and make changes that lessen your impact on the 
environment. Integrate sustainability values into choices 
about school lunches, waste systems, leadership 
development programs, field trips and supplemental 
learning opportunities, capital improvement plans and 
landscaping. 

ABOVE: Second-grader Lilly 
Kessler dumps her food 
scraps into a compost bin. 
RIGHT: Members of the Green 
Club collect compost from the 
preschool at Hillel Day School 
on Feb. 6.