'We can all help protect our planet, will you?'
Today we hear from IH Rome Accademia Britannica who have embraced the 40,000 km challenge to save harmful carbon emissions. See what a mind shift they have had since the pandemic hit and what they have been able to achieve as whole school to do their part to save our planet!
'Here at IH Rome Accademia Britannica, we’ve embraced the IH World 40k Challenge. As a school we feel it’s very important for everyone to do their bit to save our planet. For us this doesn’t mean driving to an out-of-town location at the weekend for a walk, but instead means we must change the way we go about our normal day-to-day lives. For our staff this has meant jumping on their bikes to get to school, rather than clogging up the roads and damaging the environment by sitting in their cars in lengthy traffic jams. We have staff members who live outside of the city and they are continuing to work from home. At IH Rome Accademia Britannica we embraced online working very soon after COVID-19 hit Italy and it taught us that there is an alternative way to live and to work. We feel that this shouldn’t be forgotten now that the pandemic situation is easing. When we first moved online we were apprehensive about how it would work but it has ended up opening up a whole new world for us and has shown us that we can change what we do for the better.
It has been wonderful to see how all of our staff members have embraced the initiative, and it’s really shown that we can all contribute to making a big difference to the health of our planet without having to make a big difference to our daily lives. Our staff haven’t just embraced the initiative in their working lives but also in their social lives – walking and cycling to meet friends and to the shops. We’re very fortunate to live in such a beautiful part of the world so it makes perfect sense to go out and enjoy it, whilst also helping to conserve it for future generations.
We’ve not only encouraged smart working for our staff but have also encouraged smart working for our students so everyone can be involved in doing their bit for the planet. Online learning opens doors to those who can’t access our school easily, those who would otherwise need to commute for a long time, and those who have hectic lives but still want to be able to do something for themselves – like learning English.'
The Director of Studies at IH Rome Accademia Britannica says,
"The Covid pandemic taught us that it is possible to live and work differently. Global warming tells us that both individuals and companies MUST do all they can to reduce car journeys and carbon emissions and accommodate work from home where possible."
'Now is not to the time to go back to normal at the risk of causing more damage to our planet. Now is the time to embrace the positive changes we’ve made and seen since February 2020 and come together for the sake of everyone, now and in the future.'
Well done to the whole team at IH Rome Accademia Britannica for these great efforts! We will hear more from IH schools around the world in the coming weeks.