Students Compete to GREEN Their Schools

"How green is your school?" is the question CL&P is asking Connecticut high school students as part of its Live Green – Win Green competition. Live Green – Win Green challenges students to demonstrate what their school is currently doing to save energy and preserve the environment and to propose one or more new eco-friendly initiatives they would like to put in place.

"The idea is to encourage high school students to think green," said CL&P spokesman Mitch Gross, "to use their creativity and ingenuity in ways that serve the environment."

In 2008, student teams from nearly 20 schools across the state each produced a two-minute video and 1,000 word essay on the topic, knowing that the winning submission was worth a $20,000 grant toward making their proposed green initiatives a reality. After narrowing the field to 15 deserving finalists, the grand prize was awarded to the Earth Club of Suffield High School, in Suffield. Honorable Mentions, plus $5,000 grants each, were awarded to Daniel Hand High School in Madison, East Lyme High School, and Mercy High School in Middletown. And while its team didn't win a grant, Simsbury High School pulled in the "People's Choice" award – thanks to an email blast from the school's principal encouraging the community to go online and cast a vote.

Justin Kaput, a teacher in Suffield's Agri-Science department, mentors the school's Earth Club. "It's amazing how much these kids care about the environment," said Kaput, who has been an environmentalist for years. He sees the competition as a catalyst for awareness and change, as well as a great way to share ideas and learn from what other schools are doing across the state.

"We really appreciate CL&P giving us this opportunity," said Kaput. "It's given our school something that we can all focus on and has created a lot of momentum and administrative support for making some eco-friendly changes."

To learn more about the contest, visit www.livegreenwingreen.com.