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Whitney High School Ecology & Wildlife Club Hosts Community Tree Sale to Combat Climate Change

Cerritos, California [1/29/2021]

Did you know that if you stacked 850,000 sheets of paper, the stack would be taller than the Statue of Liberty? The passionate students of the Ecology and Wildlife Club at Whitney High School know this quirky piece of information because that’s exactly how much paper their school used during the 2018-19 school year!  They’ve decided to take action to replenish the natural resources the school consumed and fight global warming at the same time.

As a service to the Cerritos community, the Whitney’s Ecology and Wildlife Club is partnering with the non-profits,Tree-Plenish and Grades of Green to host an online tree sale. Trees are critical for balancing the earth’s temperature because they absorb the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide and can store it safely in their roots, branches, and trunks for decades.

The students are striving to sell at least 110 Gala apple trees to offset Whitney High School’s paper usage and create a healthier community. The sale will run through February 13th and customers will be able to pick-up their tree(s) at a socially distanced drive-thru pick-up at Whitney High School on March 13th.  Currently, the Gala trees are being offered at a 25% discount of $7.30 and supply is limited! To purchase a tree visit: www.tree-plenish.org/whitney.  For more information refer to the club’s FAQ: www.tinyurl.com/whstrees. The student’s project has the potential carbon sequestration power of 220,000 pounds of CO2 over the lifespan of the trees.

ABOUT TREE-PLENISH

Tree-Plenish is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit whose mission is to create more sustainable schools by replenishing the number of trees used to satisfy each school’s paper requirements.  Tree-Plenish events are planned by student leaders. Leaders determine the number of trees they want to plant in their community. This figure is based on the amount of paper their school uses. Once the number of trees to be planted is determined, they plan and advertise the event, and anyone in the community can sign up to either volunteer as a tree planter on the day of the event or request to have a tree planted in their yard (or plant trees themselves).

 ABOUT GRADES OF GREEN

Grades of Green is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit whose mission is to inspire and empower kids and the broader school community to care for the environment.  The Whitney Ecology and Wildlife club students were inspired to take action by participating in Grades of Green’s Climate Solutions Campaign in which student leaders launch climate-focused campaigns around the globe with Grades of Greens’ support. When a student team joins a campaign, they are paired with a Grades of Green mentor who provides personal guidance, research and leadership coaching. Participating student teams are eligible to earn eco-grants to extend the impact of their environmental project. Grades of Green provides student teams with these services at no cost.  This is the fourth Grades of Green Campaign the Ecology and Wildlife Club has undertaken to spread awareness and enact environmental change in the local communities. They have organized projects to compost food waste on campus, constructed an eight-foot model of an ocean wave from plastic water bottles to represent the effects of single-use plastics on marine habitats, and developed a curriculum to educate elementary school students on the dangers of plastic pollution.

HOW CAN STUDENTS GET INVOLVED WITH GRADES OF GREEN?

Are you a student who would like to get involved or do you know of one? Find more information and sign up your student team at www.gradesofgreen.org or email [email protected].

HOW CAN STUDENTS CONNECT WITH TREE-PLENISH?

Interested in hosting an event during the 2021-2022 school year?  Our team will reach out to you over the summer with more information!  We will give you all the resources and mentorship you need to host your own Tree-Plenish event.  Complete interest form at: https://treeplenish.typeform.com/to/XoUpMy6k

 

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