Founders and Facilitators of the eco smArt Project. All donations are tax deductible and greatly appreciated.
31 Spalding Circle; Pittsburgh, Pa 15228
2010 Eco SmArt. All Rights Reserved.
Environmentalists and engineers have yet to discover a way to maintain the delicate, vital balance between efficient utilization and protection of the Earth’s natural resources. As a result of recent environmental initiatives, most local communities teach young people about the recycling process and the role they have in responsibly disposing of common paper, plastic, and aluminum products. Every year, recyclable waste products are picked up curbside by community recycling programs. A portion of the recyclable waste products which are reusable material may not actually be recycled. Local programs such as Creative Reuse Pittsburgh have found innovative ways to help divert a significant portion of this waste stream from landfills and make it available again to the public. Why? Because taking these salvaged materials out of their normal context allows creative people, like those behind the Eco smArt Project, to teach young people to transform these materials into renewed objects of value and beauty. Although the school environment at Myrtle Elementary School is academically focused, students are also supported in their development of resiliency skills needed to navigate life’s challenges. Through Eco smArt classes, student will have the opportunity to develop these resiliency skills as they learn to find value in unexpected places.
Working in conjunction with Art Expression Inc, a local after-school program designed to improve students’ social skills and tolerance, self-concept, and creative self-expression through visual art, young participants in the Eco smArt project have generated innovative design techniques and have facilitated the creative reuse of non-recyclable materials. For decades, artists and craftsmen have pioneered the idea of transforming discarded objects into priceless works of art and have become a prime example of “working with what you’ve got.” Professionals in the field refer to any discarded, scrap materials that are used in place of pre-purchased art supplies as “found objects.” Whether using worn-out clothing for quilts, broken glass for colorful mosaic or dismal subway walls for public murals, artists employ their visual instincts to imagine the aesthetic possibilities of wasted materials and misused environments. Applying these same principals, Myrtle Elementary School students have been provided basic art supplies, reusable refuse items from home, and salvaged materials pre-purchased from Creative Reuse Pittsburgh to create large, three-dimensional sculptures.
The Eco smArt project could yield not only significant and continuing changes in the environment, but also an emotional impact on group participants. It would potentially lead students to internalize the ideas that second chances are possible and sometimes the most precious things are overlooked at first. Students struggle with the common challenges of
social exclusion, peer pressure, bullying, and home life stressors. This project has given the Keystone Oaks School District an opportunity to support the personal growth of student participants in the Eco smArt program by helping them to positively engage with peers during these art classes, while developing the fundamental creativity and cognitive skills needed to explore the worlds of art science and technology.
Art Expression Inc. a non-profit foundation, is an internationally recognized provider of after-school, social skills through art programming. Art Expression Inc. has delivered programming to over 1,000 students in over 10 schools, program outcomes include:
Please visit ArtExpressionInc.org to learn more about this award winning program.
Creative Reuse Pittsburgh’s mission is to get re-usable materials which are ordinarily discarded back into circulation, through programs that explore and encourage new ways of using these otherwise wasted resources.
Art Expression Inc.’s Eco smArt project was made possible through funding provided by the Benedum/Grable STEAM grant: “The Grable Foundation and The Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation have developed the STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, ARTS, and Mathematics) Education Grant to assist school districts located in Intermediate Units #1 and #3 in gorging new & creative connections with one or more community organizations or institutions of higher education to integrate arts & technology across academic disciplines.”
Teaches students the importance of nurturing not only the environment but also themselves, thereby reinforcing the importance of sustainable practices in both social and environmental contexts.
Seeds of learning are planted each day within our children. These seeds are nurtured and protected. The seeds ultimately flourish into plants with strong roots (the home) and are joined by many other plants that enhance the viability and beauty of the garden where they are planted (the community). Growth is supported by many ingredients including room to grow, sun, and rich soil (the schools). Schools nurture the learning seeds in children, revealing many facets of growth over time. A child’s growth reflects these various dimensions. Physical growth involves nourishing one’s body to make it strong and able to function at an optimal level. Academic growth encompasses challenging curriculum with varied lessons and dedicated teachers. Personal growth involves the ability to relate to both peers and adults. Within these relationships, appropriate communication skills develop and the exchange of ideas is accepted and encouraged.
StART Growing is a program that will creatively integrate science and art in addressing the importance of both self and environmental nurturance. Creating favorable conditions in the environment will allow both the individual and the environment to thrive. Likewise, teaching our students the importance of nurturing not only the environment but also themselves reinforces the importance of sustainable practices in both the social and the environmental context.
The StART Growing experience will encompass planting and nurturing individual seeds in crocks decorated by the students. Students will care for their plants, providing adequate water, light and rich soil. This aspect of the experience will be creative (decorating crocks) and scientific (planting, watering, providing adequate sunlight). The goals of the program include developing an awareness of nurturing one’s self and the environment, improving social skills and tolerance, supporting positive self-concept, and engaging in creative expression through the visual arts. In addition to the individual plantings, the culminating projects will involve the planting of bulbs/perennials on the outside of each school building by the students in the StART Growing class during both the fall and spring sessions for the purpose of nurturing the environment and beautifying the exterior of the school. The final prong of the program will be a PowerPoint presentation depicting the StART growing classes.
During the classroom portion of the program, concepts on both self and environmental nurturance will be presented to the students by the Art Therapists. These concepts and lessons are intended to nurture in each of the participants “healthy living” techniques. StART Growing will encompass the literal growing of actual seeds as well as the figurative sowing of seeds related to healthy concepts such a nutritious eating, staying fit and being active. The StART Growing classes are intended to plants seeds of learning to endure far beyond the six week class period. The take away is the planting seeds within each participant focusing on individual worth, value and inner potential. The nurturing of this potential will be initiated during the StART Growing program and continue long after the last class. The final group project of permanent plantings around the schools will beautify the building exteriors, making them pleasant, inviting, and nurturing places within the communities.
Since the beginning of time, man has been inspired to create art utilizing the tiniest seeds of inspiration. This seed of inspiration comes from the environment and a strong desire to represent that seed in a visual way. Once the seed is nurtured, it manifests itself in artistic self-expression, be it in a drawing, painting, sculpture, or a planting. Children are the artists of the future. If we plant the proper seed within their very rich imaginations, the potential masterpieces are boundless.