The purpose of this resource is to educate drivers about the health and environmental hazards of air pollution caused by idling, and encourage them to stop idling in the school zone.
Description
This campaign aims to change that behaviour through a combination of education and encouragement that can take many forms, depending on a school’s interests and capacity.
Examples of campaign activities include:
- Whole-school assembly and announcements;
- Newsletter article(s);
- Posters for display around school;
- ‘Traffic counts’ to measure how many vehicles are idling;
- Air quality monitoring to measure pollution levels;
- Letters to parents and school bus drivers asking them not to idle; and
- Permanent idle-free zone signage.
Student groups are encouraged to take the lead to develop a campaign message and materials, with support from teachers. Data should be collected before and after the campaign activities to measure the impact on idling behaviour.
What you will need
- Campaign templates
- Arts & crafts materials for posters
- Computer to write/submit content for school newsletter
Who can help
Student leaders/group, teachers, public health nurses, principals, and school council.
Resources
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Idle-Free Schools Toolkit includes resources that can help you to run an effective idling reduction campaign, including sample letters, flyers, pledge forms, campaign schedules, and more.
Key words
Pollution, advocacy, student leadership, school zone, clean air, science, math, English, data collection, civic engagement, idling, exhaust fumes, diesel fumes.