This is a guest post by Tara Chattoraj, student at Wheaton Warrenville South in Chicago. 

“If you want to 1 year of prosperity, plant corn.

If you want 10 years of prosperity, plant trees.

If you want 100 years of prosperity, educate people.”

-Chinese proverb

As environmental clubs, a part of what we do is inform the public, in order to bring more change than each individual in our club can do. We want to help our schools, our community, and our nation – heck, the world — to take a green stance. Pretty big job, huh? Well, that’s why I’m writing about one of my favorite ACE awareness projects: DOTs.

DOTS are a great school project where you can really reap the attention of your peers and teachers on multiple levels. First thing, you get students (or anyone else, I suppose) to write a pledge to Do One Thing (DOT) to help the environment (use whatever paper or other material you wish to write on). You can do this in so many ways: if you want to keep it simple, just go around to classrooms and ask teachers for 5 minutes of their time (study hall, science classes, and free period seem to work the best for this). Or, you can get creative with it – try doing it at lunch or during an event, or even holding a raffle to accompany the campaign and entice participation. The best part? While these kids are filling these out, they’re thinking about the environment – and chances are they’ll still be thinking about it (even just the littlest bit) when they get home.

While you’re telling them why and how to save the environment (I would explain the project and give them a few example DOTs to get them started), make sure you inform them about your club. Spreading publicity about your projects will not only lead to more member participation, but you’ll find more support throughout the school. There are so many activities at high school that it’s easy to get lost in the crowd, but if you show students how great your club and your aspirations are then you’ll definitely be a ringer.

Before I tell you the next step, let me address this common concern: How can I make any impact with a club limited in size? You do not know how many times I’ve heard that from clubs just getting started or with only a few people truly dedicated to the group. But I’m here to tell you that doesn’t mean a thing – 1 person can collect 30 DOTs in 5 minutes simply by going to 1 class, giving an introduction and instructions, and passing out and collecting the DOTs. Doesn’t sound like a lot? Well consider this: 4 people would be able to collect 700 DOTs in less than 30 minutes – give it 4 days and you could reach your entire school with hardly any effort! Like I said, easy peasy.

So, now that you have all these pledges, what do you do with them? Well, a picture is worth a thousand words, right? So make a picture! A collage, a nature scene, big block letters… just make it eye-catching and cool. Put it in a public place, like a display case, hallway, or cafeteria wall with a sign announcing your club and your mission (with permission, of course) Not only is it even further publicity, but people are more likely to stick to their promises if they see it every day for a week or two.

Don’t believe me? Well try it. I’ve seen it work time and time again – it’s a project you can repeat, revamp… whatever you want. Use them to accompany different projects, use different materials – just make it your own and have a blast with it. You’ll be amazed at the difference you can make.

And I almost forgot my closer quote (I am just really on a roll today with these green quotes =)

Today’s mighty oak is just yesterday’s nut that held its ground.

– Anonymous

Some Websites You Might Find Helpful
https://acespace.org/dot
https://acespace.org/toolkit/dot
https://acespace.org/dot/eco-mural
http://www.50waystohelp.com/