Doorstop Education

Career club packets / Sustainability

How to run a sustainability club

A club that measures a problem on campus, fixes it with the people who run the school, and proves it worked. Start with the cafeteria: the waste is easy to see and address.

Built onEco-Schools USA from the National Wildlife Federation, a free framework for student-led green teams, and EPA’s Guide to Conducting Student Food Waste Audits for the first project.

Part 1

Start the club

Eco-Schools calls this your Action Team. It needs students, one teacher, and ideally one person from the cafeteria or facilities.

Start the club

1Get signupsProof people want the club, and when they can meet.

Copy the Doorstop signup form, rename it, and send it to group chats and the classes closest to the field. Every signup is proof people want this, and the form asks when people can meet.

2Ask a teacher to adviseStart with a science or agriculture teacher, or whoever already runs recycling at your school.
Email to a teacherSubject: I’m starting a sustainability club! Would you be open to advising?

Hi [Mr./Ms./Dr. last name],

I’m starting a sustainability club and have [number from the form] students signed up. We’d measure how much our school wastes, starting with lunch, and work with the cafeteria to cut it. Would you be open to being our advisor?

We’d like to meet [times that worked on the form]. I’ll run the meetings and handle signups; we’d mostly need you there and your name on the club form.

With hope and gratitude,
[Your name]

Once they say yes, ask for your school’s form to make the club official. More on this step: How to start a club.

3Register with Eco-Schools USA

Registration on nwf.org/eco-schools-us is free. It gives you the Seven Steps, project “pathways” (consumption and waste, energy, water, school grounds, and more), and a certification the school can earn at the end.

  1. 01

    Form an Action Team

    Students lead, with an adult advisor.

  2. 02

    Engage the community

    Cafeteria staff, custodians, families, local groups.

  3. 03

    Make an action plan

    One problem, measured before you start.

  4. 04

    Take action and collect data

    Do the project and count the results.

  5. 05

    Monitor and evaluate

    Measure again. Did it work?

  6. 06

    Connect it to classes

    Teachers use your data in science, math, or health.

  7. 07

    Celebrate and write an EcoCode

    A short pledge the whole school can see.

These are the Eco-Schools Seven Steps. You need all seven for certification, but the club’s year really runs on steps 3 to 5.

Split the work

Four jobs are enough for a new club. One person can hold two.

President
DoesRuns meetings, talks to the advisor, keeps the calendar.
Speakers lead
DoesFinds and books one guest a month, sends the thank-you note.
Treasurer
DoesKeeps the budget, files grant and fee paperwork with the advisor.
Outreach lead
DoesPosts meeting reminders, recruits from classes, and takes photos for grant reports.
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Part 2

Fund it

An audit costs gloves and a scale. Bigger projects (bins, a garden, water stations) are where grants come in.

First: find out how your school takes money

  • The student activity account
  • The PTA, PTO, or booster club
  • The district’s education foundation

Who to ask

The front office always knows. Ask the school secretary or office manager who handles club money: usually a bookkeeper or financial secretary. Or ask your advisor; they’ll know who did it for their last club.

Email to askOpen in email

Subject: How can someone donate to our sustainability club?

Hi [name],

I’m [your name], a [grade], and I’m starting a sustainability club with [advisor] as our advisor. We’re about to ask [local businesses, families, or a grant] for [what you need], and I want to make sure the money goes to the right place.

Could you tell me:
- Who a donation should be made out to, and what to write in the memo line?
- Whether the club needs its own account in the student activity fund, and how to set one up?
- Whether the PTA or booster club can take a donation earmarked for the club?

Thank you so much!
[Your name]

Or ask a friend

Someone who’s treasurer of student government, or an officer in a club that already raises money, has done this.

Text to a friend

Hey! Quick question: when your club gets money (a donation or a grant), where does it go? Who did you ask about setting that up?

Find grants, sponsors, and local funders for your club

Enter your school and we’ll search for PTAs, foundations, local businesses, and grants near you, write a one-page proposal, and find your state senator’s office.

Find funders near you

Budget

1What it costs, and an email to your principalA typical budget, and the email that asks your school to cover it.
WhatTypical costNotes
Audit supplies$40–80An estimate: gloves, trash bags, buckets, and a bathroom or luggage scale.
Signs for bins$20Print them at school.
Compost or worm binOften freeMany county waste departments give these to schools with gardens.
Share table$0A spare table and a cooler for milk, with the cafeteria’s OK.
Email to your principalSubject: Can you help us fund the sustainability club?

Hi [Mr./Ms./Dr. last name],

I’m starting a sustainability club with [number] students signed up and [advisor] as our advisor. We’re going to measure how much food gets thrown away at lunch and work with the cafeteria to cut it.

To get started we need supplies for a cafeteria food waste audit (gloves, bags, buckets, and a scale), which would cost about [$60]. Is there room in the budget for that, or do you have advice on how we could get it funded?

With hope and gratitude,
[Your name]

  • Your county or city waste department. Ask what it gives schools for free: speakers, bins, signs, compost help.
  • Your water and power utilities. Many fund school conservation projects or run contests with prizes.
  • Grades of Green runs grants and student challenges for green teams, and Captain Planet Foundation and Project Learning Tree GreenWorks fund student projects when their rounds are open.
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Part 3

First project: lunch waste

Count it, ask why, fix it with the cafeteria, and send what’s left to people who need it.

  1. 01

    Count one lunch

    Follow EPA’s audit guide: with gloves on, sort one lunch period’s trays into untouched food, eaten-some food, milk, and trash, and weigh each pile. Ask the cafeteria manager first and say it’s about helping, not blaming.

  2. 02

    Ask students why

    Survey students: what do you throw away, and what would you actually eat? Ask for specific swaps that fit the cafeteria’s rules, not “better food.”

  3. 03

    Bring numbers to the cafeteria

    Meet the food service manager with the weights and the top survey answers. Offer something small they can try in a week, like a taste test of two options.

  4. 04

    Set up a share table

    A spot where students leave unopened food for others to take. Your cafeteria or district decides the rules, so bring it as a question.

  5. 05

    Count again

    Weigh one lunch after the change. A before-and-after number is what convinces a principal to keep it, and it’s your Eco-Schools data.

Email to the food service managerSubject: Students who want to help cut lunch waste

Hi [Mr./Ms. last name],

I’m [name], a [grade] at [school], and I lead our sustainability club with [advisor]. We’d like to help cut how much food gets thrown out at lunch, and we’d love to work with you rather than guess.

Could we [weigh the waste from one lunch period / show you what students told us in a survey]? We’d share everything with you first. We’re also curious what you’ve seen gets thrown out the most.

Would you have 15 minutes after lunch one day this week or next?

Thank you,
[Your name]

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Part 4

A semester of meetings

Every other meeting is hands-on. The rest are planning and guests.

#Meeting
1Kickoff: walk the campus and list everything that gets wasted (food, water, power, paper). Vote on a first project.
2Plan the audit and email the food service manager.
3Run the audit at lunch.
4Make the chart; write the survey.
5Guest speaker: someone from the county waste department or a recycler.
6Meet the cafeteria with the numbers.
7Run a taste test or start the share table.
8Field trip: a landfill, recycling center, or compost site.
9Audit again and compare.
10Present results to the principal; write the school’s EcoCode.

Second semester, pick the next Eco-Schools pathway: water (find leaks, push for refill stations), energy (lights and computers left on overnight), or school grounds (a garden that uses the compost).

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Part 5

Speakers and mentors

Waste and utility departments send speakers to schools for free.

Find speakers near your school

Pick your school, and we’ll search for people working nearby whose jobs fit a sustainability club, ten at a time, or for alumni of your school. Each one comes with an invite already written. Your list is saved in this browser.

  • County and city waste or recycling departments. Many have free school speakers and tours.
  • Food banks and food recovery groups, who can explain where donated school food goes.
  • Your district’s own staff: the food service director, facilities manager, or energy manager. They’re the ones who can say yes.
  • Sustainability officers at local colleges, hospitals, and big employers.
  • Your own school’s families. Add a line to the signup form: “Does anyone in your family work in this field?” It’s the fastest source there is.
  • Alumni. Search LinkedIn for your school’s name plus a job title. People say yes to their old school.
  • Local colleges. Professors, program directors, and student clubs at the nearest community college or university often have outreach time to fill.
  • People you read about. A news story or a company’s team page is a reason to write: “I read about your work on [thing].”
Email to a speakerSubject: Would you talk to our sustainability club about your work?

Hi [name],

I’m a student at [school] in [city], and I run our sustainability club. I came across [how you found them: a teacher, an article, their website], and I think our members would love to hear about [what they do in sustainability].

What it would involve:
- One club meeting, about [40] minutes, in person or on video.
- About fifteen minutes on what you do and how you got there, then questions. No slides needed.
- A student will meet you at the front office and introduce you.

Research that followed thousands of students for ten years found that hearing from people with real jobs in high school was linked to higher pay later on. A lot of us have never met anyone who does what you do.

Would you be up for it? We meet [day and time], and any [month] date works.

Thank you,
[Your name]
[Club name], [school]

Make the line about why you picked them specific; that’s what gets a yes. No answer in a week? Send one short follow-up.

Email to a mentorSubject: Would you mentor a student from our sustainability club this year?

Hi [name],

I’m a student at [school] in [city], and I run our sustainability club with [advisor], our advisor. I came across [how you found them], and I think you’d be a great mentor for a student who wants to work in sustainability.

What it would involve:
- A video call or meeting with your student about once a month
- Any background check or sign-in rules the school has for volunteers
- Nothing to prepare: just being honest about your work and how you got there

Would you be up for it? Happy to answer any questions.

Thank you,
[Your name]
[Club name], [school]

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