18 | MARCH 2 • 2023 

T

he school cafeteria 
at Hillel Day School 
teemed with activity 
on Monday, Feb. 6 — the 
Jewish holiday of Tu b’Shevat 
— as students stepped out of 
their ordinary lunch routine 
to help the environment. 
Students and adult 
volunteers stationed 
themselves by bright green 
bins, assisting students and 
staff to determine what 
could go in the compost. 
Food scraps, compostable 
lunch containers, special 
plant-made cutlery and 
napkins filled the bins. The 
black trash bins remained 
remarkably empty. 
By the end of the day, six 
bins were used to collect 
compost from more than 580 
students ranging from young 
toddlers to eighth graders.
This was Compost Day — 
a special Tu b’Shevat program 

for students to learn about 
the environmental benefits 
of composting and give them 
the chance to contribute their 
food scraps to eventually 
become rich soil. 
The student volunteers 
from the newly formed 
Green Club planned and 
implemented the program 
based on their desire to 
educate their community on 
environmental issues and 
have a positive impact. 

HELP FROM THE 
COMMUNITY
The one-day event was 
enabled by two local 
organizations focused on 
sustainability: the Detroit 
Zoological Society’s 
GreenPrize, which 
recognized Hillel’s Green 
Club with an honorable 
mention, and Hazon Detroit, 
which awarded the school 

a $1,000 grant as part of 
its Seal of Sustainability 
program. Hazon Detroit 
is the local chapter of the 
leading Jewish environmental 
organization and works 
with more than 40 Jewish 
organizations in the area on 
their sustainability efforts. 
“Although Hillel Day 
School is still in the planning 
stages of its initiatives, it’s 
important to support their 
efforts so they can develop 
their vision into a road map,” 
wrote Andy McDowell, 
manager of sustainability 
for the Detroit Zoological 
Society (DZS). 
The DZS GreenPrize 
is an award program that 
promotes the development 
of student-led initiatives that 
respond to this challenge 
with tangible outcomes. This 
program supports schools as 
incubators and innovators 

to work collaboratively to 
make a better future for both 
people and the environment, 
McDowell explained. 
Hazon Detroit has been 
a longtime supporter of the 
school’s green efforts. Past 
grants have supported the 
school’s greenhouse, outdoor 
spaces and sustainable 
infrastructure. 
“Emerging research shows 
that one key way to mitigate 
the impacts of growing 
climate anxiety in young 
people is for students to work 
together on environmental 
initiatives,” Amit Weitzer, 
director of Hazon Detroit, 
wrote in an email. “Hazon is 
thrilled to see schools such 
as Hillel Day School creating 
meaningful opportunities 
for collective environmental 
action — as they provide 
leadership opportunities 
for young people to make a 

OUR COMMUNITY

continued on page XX

Hillel Day School’s Green Club holds successful Compost Day.
Green Efforts Take Root

LAURA PASEK SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS 

Hillel Day 
School took on 
a composting 
initiative as an 
environmental 
project. 

