Go Green Initiative

06/19/2026

Healthier schools start with cleaner air.

Go Green Initiative's newly expanded Indoor Air Quality resource hub is now live, and it's the most comprehensive free platform available to help school districts take action on IAQ and greenhouse gas emissions.

Whether you're a parent wondering about the air your kids breathe at school, a teacher dealing with a stuffy or smelly classroom, or a community member who wants to see your district do better; this hub has resources that can help move things forward.

Here's what school districts can access for free:

✅ On-demand IAQ courses built for board members, administrators, and facilities teams
✅ Model school board policies and IAQ Management Plans from districts nationwide
✅ Real examples from participating cohort districts
✅ Funding and recognition opportunities, including a new grant coming soon with up to $40,000 available per district

Read our latest blog for the full story, then share it with someone at your school or district who needs to see it.

🔗 Blog: gogreeninitiative.org/blog/a-smarter-way-to-fight-for-cleaner-air-in-schools
🔗 Hub: GoGreenInitiative.org/IAQ

06/18/2026

Parents and Teachers: The 2027 NSBA Magna Awards Could Be Coming to Your School District — and Here's Why It Matters.

Teachers, you feel it every day — the stuffy classroom, the student who can't stop coughing, the afternoon energy crash that has nothing to do with the lesson plan. Parents, you see it too — in your child's backpack of allergy meds, in the sick days that pile up, in the grades that don't reflect what you know your kid is capable of.

Poor indoor air quality is one of the most overlooked factors in student health and academic performance. The good news? It's a problem school districts can fix, and The National School Boards Association (NSBA) Magna Awards recognize the ones that are doing exactly that.

The 2027 program is open right now, and this year's competition has a structure that makes it more accessible than ever. For the first time in the program's 31-year history, districts compete by community type: Urban, Suburban, and Rural. That means your district isn't measured against communities with fundamentally different resources and challenges. It competes on its own terms.

Here's how you can help make it happen:

🏫 Share this post with your school board member, principal, or district superintendent. They may not know this opportunity exists.

📋 Ask your district whether they have an IAQ Management Plan in place. If not, free resources are available at gogreeninitiative.org/IAQ.

📣 Spread the word — the more districts that participate, the healthier our schools become for every student and educator in them.

The application deadline is October 31, 2026. Free training for every step of the process is available through Go Green Initiative, developed in partnership with the EPA.

Your district can do this. And your students — and your classrooms — will be better for it. 🌱

👉 Learn more: gogreeninitiative.org/IAQ
👉 Apply now: nsba.org/resources/magna-awards
👉 Read the full story: gogreeninitiative.org/blog/2027-magna-awards-applications-are-now-open

06/17/2026

Do you know what the air quality is like in your child's classroom right now?

Most parents don't — and most schools haven't checked. But a growing number of districts across the country are changing that, and the results are making a real difference for student health, attendance, and learning.

On July 14, Go Green Initiative is hosting a free webinar featuring district leaders from East St. Louis, Illinois, Salamanca, New York, and Tornillo, Texas — three communities that have taken on this challenge head-on.

You'll hear from Joseph Haskell, who oversees maintenance and operations for East St. Louis School District 189 (), and Sandra Brundage, who manages the grant program at Salamanca City Central School District (), a small rural district situated on the Allegany Territory of the Seneca Nation. Joining them are Luis Guerra and Rene Estrada, the finance and facilities leaders driving IAQ improvements in Tornillo ISD (), along with Matt Hiester, a specialist from the U.S. EPA ().

Together, they'll share what's working, what they've learned, and how other districts can do the same.

📅 Healthy Schools in Action: District Leaders and EPA Perspectives
🆓 Free | Monday, July 14
👉 Register here: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_-ZYw_DlOR4G5mvy0R2GdYQ

Can't make it live? A full library of past GGI webinars on indoor air quality is available free anytime at:
👉 GoGreenInitiative.org/IAQ.

Every child deserves to breathe clean air at school. Join us July 14 and help make that a reality in your community. 💚

06/16/2026

💚 Do you know an extraordinary rural teacher?

The deadline to apply for or nominate someone for the 2026 NREA Rural Teacher of the Year Award is almost here.

🗓️ Applications close June 30.

Across rural America, dedicated educators are helping students succeed, strengthening their communities, and creating opportunities that can last a lifetime. The National Rural Education Association (NREA) created this award to recognize the teachers who make that impact every day.

Whether it's a teacher who inspires students to dream bigger, supports families through challenges, or goes the extra mile to help every child succeed, now is the time to celebrate their contributions.

At the Go Green Initiative, we're proud to partner with the National Rural Education Association and support the educators who make rural schools and communities stronger.

👉 Learn more about the award:
https://nrea.net/2026-national-rtoy

👉 Submit a nomination or application before June 30: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeuKlLUEraGEMgUdfkl0BBTv3-CK15Dk-DZvVB5swteZ2UGnw/viewform

📣 Please help us spread the word by sharing this post with teachers, administrators, school board members, and education advocates in your network.

06/15/2026

The Go Green Initiative’s new Indoor Air Quality page brings together practical tools, training, model resources, national best practices, and opportunities designed to help school districts create healthier learning environments.

Explore:
✅ Free IAQ courses
✅ School board policies and IAQ management plans
✅ Resources for facilities teams and district leaders
✅ Cohort district updates
✅ Podcasts, articles, and partner organizations
✅ Upcoming funding and recognition opportunities

Visit the new IAQ resource hub:
https://gogreeninitiative.org/iaq/iaq-landing-page/

Healthy Indoor Air Starts Here Explore Go Green Initiative’s indoor air quality tools, training, model resources, partner networks, and public engagement channels designed to help school districts create healthier learning environments. Explore Resources View Featured Opportunities Why This Matter...

06/15/2026

Did you miss our June 9 webinar? Good news — you can still watch it. 🎬

Protecting Children from Extreme Heat in Schools is now available on demand, and it's one conversation every parent, teacher, and school community member should hear.

🎞️ Watch now: https://youtu.be/Gs_Quffp4oA

Grace Wickerson of the Federation of American Scientists () sat down with us to talk about something that's affecting kids in classrooms across the country right now — and what schools and communities can actually do about it.

Whether you missed it the first time or want to share it with someone who needs to hear it, the recording is ready and waiting.

Grace also put together a great set of resources you can explore:

📌 State & Local Heat Policy Agenda: https://docs.google.com/document/d/15gJpL7D4OVP8tWAuTNpY6JC6MHPPFVXIKzxffSuxnbo/edit?usp=sharing
📌 HeatReady Schools Framework: https://globalfutures.asu.edu/heatready/schools/about/
📌 Framework for a Heat Ready Nation:https://fas.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/July-2025_Heat-Ready-Nation.pdf

⭐ Magna Award Points still available: https://forms.gle/gsbhucyNJHH5mLzDA

Our next webinar is coming up soon. Register here and never miss an update: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_-ZYw_DlOR4G5mvy0R2GdYQ

Know a parent, teacher, or school leader who should watch this? Tag them below or share this post. 💚

06/11/2026

⏳ 4 days left to apply — don't let this one slip by!

The NSBA Policy Leadership Cohort application deadline is midnight, June 15, 2026 … and seats are going fast.

This isn't just another professional development program. It's a six-month, hands-on leadership experience built specifically for school board members who are ready to make a real difference in their districts.

Two tracks to choose from:

📘 Special Education (SPED) Governance: Strengthen board oversight and improve outcomes for students with disabilities
📗 Educator Recruitment & Retention: Build the pipelines and policies to attract and keep great teachers

By the end of the program, participants walk away with a Board-Ready Capstone Policy Action Plan and a Personalized Advocacy Roadmap — real tools they can put to work right away.

At Go Green Initiative, we believe strong school board leadership is the foundation of healthy, thriving schools. That's why we're proud to champion this program from our partners at the NSBA.

Know a board member who should apply? Share this post and tag them below! 👇

⏳ Applications close midnight, June 15 and space is limited. Learn more and apply today!
👉 https://nsba.org/policy-advocacy/federal-advocacy/policy-leadership-cohort

06/10/2026

🥈 Spotlight #5: Boston Public Schools wins a 2026 Magna Award — and their approach to clean air is transforming classrooms across an entire city.

Boston Public Schools is the largest district in Massachusetts, with 46,000 students, 100+ schools, 140 countries represented, and over 50 languages spoken. About 58% of students are economically disadvantaged. This is a district where environmental justice and educational equity go hand in hand.

When air quality concerns intensified during COVID-19, BPS didn't wait for conditions to improve. The Boston School Committee acted and built something remarkable.

Here's what they created:

🌬️ IAQ sensors in every classroom, nurse's office, and main office across the district
📊 A live public dashboard where anyone can check air quality data in real time
🎓 Students as advocates, using monitoring devices to collect and analyze real-time IAQ data in class
💰 $15.4 million in IVAQ grant funding plus ESSER funds and a Boston University partnership to sustain it all

Board member Pamela Boozer-Strother said it best:

"We merged this knowledge of the benefits of creating a healthy indoor air quality plan with a clean energy school construction plan. We are proud of the measurable results five years later."

This is what bold, equity-centered school leadership looks like. 💚

And here's the best part: You can do it, too!

You don't need to launch a district-wide sensor network overnight. Start with a board-approved IAQ policy. Install monitoring where you can. Make the data visible to your community. Build from there.

📣 2027 Magna Awards applications are now open! New Urban, Suburban, and Rural categories mean every district has a pathway to recognition.

Deadline: October 31, 2026

📝 Apply now: 👉 nsba.iad1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_cMZNIyb3XyNA2eW
📖 Read the full story: 👉 nsba.org/resources/asbj/asbj-april-2026/april-2026-magna-awards
🏫 Boston Public Schools IAQ program: 👉 bostonpublicschools.org/students-families/respiratory-illness-protocols/air-quality

06/09/2026

🎙️ New Episode Alert: TerraCycle — Eliminating the Idea of Waste

Did you know that 95% of what we throw away isn’t recycled? Not because it can’t be, but because the economics of our current waste system make it unprofitable. TerraCycle is changing that, one hard-to-recycle item at a time.

In this episode of Go Green Radio, our founder Jill Buck sits down with Tom Szaky, Founder & CEO of TerraCycle US, for a conversation that will completely change how you think about waste.

Here’s what we love most about TerraCycle for school communities:

🟢 FREE recycling programs for items your school throws away every day — pens, markers, plastic packaging, and more. Brands fund the entire process.
🟢 Schools and organizations can earn donations for their favorite charity just by participating.
🟢 Over $50 million has already been donated to schools and nonprofits through TerraCycle programs.
🟢 Every item sent to TerraCycle comes with a legal recycling guarantee, backed by independent audits. No greenwashing. Just results.

And if you’ve ever wondered whether real change is possible at scale, Tom shares the story of Loop, their reuse platform now operating in 700 stores across France, proving that a world with far less waste isn’t just a dream.

This is the kind of innovation our kids deserve to inherit. 🌍

🎧 Watch the full episode here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BIcTOfFOu68
🌐 Find free programs for your school: TerraCycle.com

Share this with a teacher, parent, or school leader who’s ready to go beyond the recycling bin!

06/08/2026

Tomorrow's the day! 🌡️

If you've been meaning to sign up for our free webinar on extreme heat in schools, tonight is the night. It takes less than a minute to register, and it could make a real difference for the kids in your community.

Protecting Children from Extreme Heat in Schools
🗓️ Tomorrow, Tuesday, June 9
🕐 11:00 AM–12:00 PM PDT | 2:00–3:00 PM EDT

In just one hour, Grace Wickerson of the Federation of American Scientists will share practical, actionable strategies that schools and communities can start using right now. Whether you're a parent, teacher, administrator, or simply someone who cares about kids — this conversation is for you.

🔗 Register here (it's free!): https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_4_3FqOGgQzOwcq3JQBEulQ

Know someone who should be there? Tag them below or share this post tonight. See you tomorrow! 👋💚