MOE Names FY2009 Ecoflow Project Schools

Japan's Ministry of the Environment (MOE) named the schools selected for the FY2009 Eco-Renovation of School Buildings and Environmental Education Project - also known as the Ecoflow Project - on June 12, 2009. Nippa Junior High School in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, Suzaku Dai-yon Elementary School in Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture, and Minamata Dai-ichi Junior High School in Minamata, Kumamoto Prefecture were selected by the evaluation committee composed of experts in green building and environmental education fields.

The Ecoflow Project, which was started in 2005, is an initiative to establish a comfortable study environment for school children while reducing carbon dioxide emissions through measures such as building insulation upgrades, photovoltaic generation system installation and rooftop gardens. What distinguishes this initiative is that it not only establishes physical infrastructure, but also promotes the penetration of green building technology in the local community using school renovations as an example, and lays out the foundations of environmental education that revolves around schools and involves local community.

Various educational activities are taking place at the schools that have already completed their eco-renovations. Kuromatsunai Junior High School in Hokkaido, having completed its eco-renovation in 2007, invited the architect who designed the school building as a guest speaker in May 2009. Students learned how their school building incorporates light and wind and how its specific structures worked, with reference to the materials used in the construction.

Many eco-ideas are also brought forth by students at these schools. Takamori Minami Elementary School in Nagano, whose eco-renovation was completed in 2008, now features outside insulation that largely eliminates the need for heaters when it's sunny outside, even in the severely cold climate of Nagano. This mechanism caught the attention of a third-grader who initiated an experiment on heating water in the sun by using plastic bottles that are painted black.

Six Schools to Join Ministry's Eco-Project (Related JFS article)
http://www.japanfs.org/en/pages/026666.html
ecoflow―School Eco-Renovation and Environmental Education Program
http://www.ecoflow.go.jp/en/

Posted: 2009/08/27 06:00:15 AM