Sustainability at the College

As of 2020 Notre Dame College has made a commitment to be more sustainable in all management practices throughout the college. Sustainability holds significant importance in Catholic education because it aligns with the Catholic Church's commitment to social justice, care for creation, and the promotion of a more just and sustainable world. It provides an opportunity for students to understand and address the ecological challenges facing the planet and encourages students to become responsible and informed global citizens.

To help with this endeavor, the college became part of the ResourceSmart Schools program offered by Sustainability Victoria. The aim of which is to help schools embed sustainability across all facilities, communities, and curriculum and help save resources and money.

Through ResourceSmart the college is committed to progress through the 5 Stars Program and become a Leadership School in sustainability. Each of the 5 Stars has a specific requirement for completion and requires staff and students to undertake initiatives and activities to help achieve common goals. The main focus of the college throughout 2020-2023 is the Waste Module, with the goal being to help educate the college (staff, students and the community) about waste and how to reduce our landfill as well as the associated costs.

Earlier this year NDC was proud to receive its first ResourceSmart Star thanks to the tireless work of the college’s Sustainability Coordinator, Phil Guthrie, and the college’s sustainability group, Terra Tomodachi.

‘Terra’ means ‘Earth’ in Italian, and ‘Tomodachi’ means ‘Friends’ in Japanese. The group meets once a fortnight to plan its various sustainability initiatives and empowers each student to lead various projects.

The college has also appointed a Sustainability Student Leader, Mia Dainton (Year 10) to help guide this group.

2023 has been a highly active and positive year with Terra Tomodachi students attending a Youth Congress on Climate Change in Shepparton and subsequently developing a range of new sustainability project ideas for NDC, including an herb garden at Knight Street and a secondhand clothing market.

If you would like to know more about sustainability at the college or would like to be more involved in this part of college life, please contact Phil Guthrie:

Email: phillip.guthrie@notredame.vic.edu.au

https://www.notredame.vic.edu.au/catholic-identity/sustainability