Go Greenish presented to the SDUHSD board on sustainability efforts within the district for the 2025-26 school year on Sept. 10. Student Executive Officer Avani Goyal and Road to Zero Waste Director Lucia Huang spoke at the meeting on behalf of the organization.
To begin, the team introduced themselves and summarized their past 2023 presentation led by co-founders Hayden Crocker and Trisha Vasanadu where they recommended electrical buses, waste diversion and practical sustainability efforts. Since then, the district has established the SDUHSD sustainability team which Go Greenish has been a part of since as student representatives.
Established through that team, a prominent success is the implementation of four operating electrical buses, along with 12 more planned. This addition places the district as the regional leader with 30-40% electrified vehicles.
The team also shared their leading initiatives for educating district students on waste management through school wide presentations, usage of compostable materials, classroom curriculum, peer-to-peer green teams and school-wide assemblies.
A goal of the organization is to assist the district in implementing SB 1383 which requires all residents and businesses to separate and recycle organic waste to reduce harmful methane emissions. Go Greenish has helped implement all three waste stations at the majority of the schools aligned with piloting liquid separators. The district has also successfully implemented compostable materials introduced by Go Greenish.
At Earl Warren Middle School, the team shared the curriculum of “Matter on the Move Lab” to four 7th grade classes, consisting of over 150 students. Through an educational video, interactive drag-and-drop games and multiple-choice questions, students were able to deepen their understanding of trash sorting and waste management, as well as the consequences of failed waste sorting.
In addition the team highlighted their statistics and future efforts. $34,600 raised from outside funding, 10 school sites with recycling and composting bins and over 2,000 middle schoolers presented to. The team plans to support the Facilities Master Plan process, continue Green Teams and school presentations.
The presenters encourage continuous student, teacher, and community engagement to make these sustainable goals flourish to realities.