Jodi Isaacs, Chi Moreno, Adem Dokmeci and GREEN Charter School staff and parents

Isaacs and her colleagues’ innovative teaching idea, “Sustainability is Smart,” is designed to create a sustainable outdoor garden, a learning environment that promotes environmentally responsible behavior in students. The mission of the Greenville Renewable Energy Education (GREEN) Charter School is to establish improved science and sustainability learning opportunities and is working towards becoming a certified Green Steps school. Green Steps is a program in South Carolina that recognizes schools that are helping their students learn about and take actions towards becoming more environmentally responsible. Students must complete projects that reflect environmental responsibility and be sustainable for at least one year in order to become a Green Steps certified school. This allows the school to incorporate the Green Steps program into a sustainable outdoor garden.