A recent Marquee poll revealed that 90 percent of students believe the school should be more environmentally friendly, but only 30 percent of students recycle. The same poll also showed that 62 percent of students recycle at home in comparison to the 30 percent who say they recycle at school. The lack of contents in the recycling bins throughout the school is evidence that even 30 percent of students recycling is a stretch. Students simply stop caring when they get school.
Instead they throw their garbage in the closest container. Students are abandoning their beliefs for the sake of convenience. The school as a whole, needs to start caring more about recycling their trash because our actions today determine the future health of our planet

It is important to take the extra 15 seconds to throw their trash away in the correct bin. With five minutes in between lunches and eight minutes in between class periods, there is no rush to get from one place to another, so students have plenty of time to go to the correct container for their trash and recyclables. Some teachers keep their recycling bins and trash bins far away from each other, resulting in students opting to use whichever bin is closest. However, taking the extra steps to reach the appropriate bin would prevent recyclables from being thrown in the trash.

Many times when the contents of the recycling bins get thrown away, it is because one half-full drink is thrown into the bin ruining the rest of the recyclables. Don’t be the one person that ruins it for everyone else. Too many people have the mindset that their actions won’t make a difference, so they take the lazy approach and toss their trash wherever is easier. The result is that many of the contents of the school’s recycling bins have to be thrown into the trash. However, the importance of preserving the environment outweighs convenience.
Students also need to take responsibility for the trash they create every day and not put the blame on someone else, like the custodians. It is not their job to rummage through the garbage to find the recyclables or go through the recycling to find the trash. It is the students’ job to make sure that what we are throwing away is in the right spot.

If students are recycling at home, they should also be recycling at school. There is no excuse for actively recycling in one place and not the other. Do we only recycle because our parents make us, or do we actually care? If so, we need to show it. Right now, students are demonstrating selective laziness; they care when it is convenient to care. High schoolers are often portrayed as lazy and uncaring. Students need to work to change that stereotype.

Teachers and administrators have work to do as well. Teachers need to encourage students to not spoil the recycling of other students by tossing in food or open drinks. Administration can provide more recycling bins for school lunches. They can use the three large bins found in the storeroom, but it’s up to students to fill them. The school could even offer a reward between the classes for recycling to bring the topic to student attention and encourage school-wide participation.
To change this, we need to realize the impact that even one person can make. We have to care. It is no one else’s responsibility but our own to fix this issue, and this starts with little things like caring about where we put our trash.