As students of Westtown, the word sustainability is constantly ingrained into our brains and lifestyles. Whether we take environmental justice, environmental science, or just walk into Westtown’s LEED certified science center, where facts of our sustainability promises are plastered everywhere, Westtown students are up to date and aware of sustainability. For Senior Projects, we wanted to challenge our own knowledge and experience to travel to San Francisco to have a closer, and more in depth understanding of a sustainable lifestyle. San Francisco is noted the second most sustainable city in the nation. They are known for the plastic bag ban, creating a carbon offset fund, the solar power program, and the local food movement. On this trip, we plan to delve into a deeper understanding of how sustainability can be implemented into our daily lives, and what steps we can take as seniors at Westtown to achieve that end.

In light of a hands on experience and education of sustainability, we will meet with a University of San Francisco professor to discuss his job teaching environmental studies at USF. I hope to learn why he believes teaching about the environment is paramount, and if living in San Francisco has anything to do with why he teaches what he teaches. We also hope he will be able to discuss how we can implement sustainability in a broader sense.

We have also contacted an alumna from Westtown. She excitedly offered for us to shadow Nature Bridge, which educates both students and adults alike in “fostering environmental literacy.” We are excited to spend the day with Westtown’s alumna and Nature Bridge interns to learn more about their mission, and hopefully we will bring back not only information about sustainability, but also bring back a new way of thinking in regards to sustainability at Westtown School.