Cardiff schools are going green with the help of the Rob Machado Foundation

Pro surfer Rob Machado, a Cardiff resident, spends much of his life in the natural environment. One of his goals is to share his passion and appreciation for nature with kids. Thus, Rob has focused his Rob Machado Foundation on helping to fund environmental education. Since Rob attended Cardiff Elementary schools as a child, the Cardiff School District was a natural place to start.

Through collaboration between the Rob Machado Foundation and the Cardiff Schools Education Association (Cardiff SEA), Cardiff students are benefiting from more environmentally friendly schools and fun, hands-on environmental education that ties to school curriculum and California State Standards.

Some of the themes that have been explored so far include:

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

The school lunch program was revamped to reduce the environmental impact by focusing on two key areas: using more environmentally-friendly consumables and creating a recycling program. Compostable lunch trays replaced styrofoam, which stays in landfills for thousands of years. Students use far fewer plastic utensils and wrappers. Straws were eliminated because they can choke wildlife. Finally, a recycling cart was created and kids, teachers, and staff were trained on how and what to recycle. "We went from fourteen 50-gallon trash cans down to only four lunchtime cans at Cardiff Elementary and Ada Harris schools,” said Jessica Toth, a parent who coordinated the project. "The kids were really excited to make such a big impact".

  {Rob learns about recycling} {Rob learns about school recycling}

Cardiff students describe the cafeteria recycling process to Rob

Photo: MJ Schumann

A second “reduce, reuse, recycle” project tackled single-use plastic water bottles, millions of which go to landfills each day. Subsidized by the Rob Machado Foundation, reusable stainless steel water bottles were made available to students and staff at a significant discount, allowing educational discussions and awareness about the heavy environmental impact of single-use plastic bottles. “The stainless steel water bottle was a great place for our family to start,” said parent Nancy Fraser. “It created the momentum for us to reduce in other ways as well. We started packing lunches with as little trash as possible, using reusable containers as opposed to Ziploc bags, cloth napkins rather than paper, and metal utensils instead of plastic.”

Organic Gardening and Farming

This past school year, organic gardening and farming was a major theme at Cardiff Elementary School. Prior to the Machado Foundation involvement, Cardiff School had a single garden location that was past its prime.

With Rob’s support, Cardiff School was able to purchase individual garden planter boxes made from recycled materials (of course!) and place them next to each classroom, to make it easier for teachers to incorporate gardening into the school day. Additionally, teachers received training and grade-specific gardening curriculum. Students get to practice their writing, math, science, and other important skills in a fun, hands-on setting.

{Garden box}  

Cardiff School was also able to update the main garden site, including new equipment, irrigation system, and signage. This area was used for a “school-to-restaurant” pilot program, developed with Rimel's Rotisserie, a Cardiff restaurant. Cardiff students researched a list of produce used by the restaurant and chose what to grow. The kids nurtured their crops over several months, then harvested lettuce, carrots, radishes, and edible flowers. Finally, they transported and sold their produce to Rimel’s owners, who featured the items in their weekend menu! Two classes participated last year and the program is planned to continue in the coming year.

  {Harvesting lettuce}

Additionally, because of the garden upgrades, the National Wildlife Federation approved Cardiff Elementary School as a Certified Wildlife Habitat and the new gardens were part of the Encinitas Garden Tour this past April.

Ocean Environmental Awareness

The Rob Machado Foundation also sponsored Ocean Week and Ocean Night at Cardiff Elementary School in March 2009.

Ocean Week creates an exciting atmosphere school-wide and serves as the centerpiece for ocean and environmental studies. That week, Cardiff Elementary School is immersed in learning about the ocean – through reading, art, science projects, field trips, and much more. Environmental topics are woven throughout the experience.

{Studying crayfish}  

Studying crayfish during Ocean Week

Photo: Billy Stern

Ocean Night, which caps Ocean Week, involves families in the learning. Several local environmental organizations participated. Highlights included:

• Pro Peninsula described sea turtle conservation efforts in San Diego and Mexico and shared amazing facts about San Diego's green sea turtles. 
• The Solana Center for Environmental Innovation brought a hands-on watershed model to demonstrate how our actions upstream impact the ocean.
• San Diego Coastkeeper's "Plastic Bag Monster" taught us how to keep our oceans free of plastic and other marine debris.
• Surfrider Foundation volunteer and author Dr Udo Wahn shared his environmentally themed book for children, Cabo and Coral Go Surfing.”
• Birch Aquarium’s interactive tide pool animal display allowed families to touch and learn about live sea creatures.
• Students displayed their ocean-themed artwork.
• Families were able to meet representatives from the local Lifeguards, Coast Guard, and State Parks.

{Coastkeeper}

SD Coastkeeper’s Plastic Bag Monster attended Ocean Night to motivate families to reduce their use of plastic

Photo: Britta Brewer

Cardiff schools are very appreciative of Rob’s support. We look forward to future environmental projects. “Rob Machado has helped us teach students through hands-on learning that science, math, and helping the environment go hand in hand,” said Tom Pellegrino, Cardiff School District Superintendent. “Through gardening, students have learned that hard work, mathematics and patience produce amazing results!”