A School's Journey Towards a Plastic-Free Future

Forty thousand small plastic water bottles per year. Saving them is equivalent - according to some basic calculations - to avoiding the release of over 3,200 tons of CO2 into the air. In practice, it's like saving 2,000 kilometers in a car. It also saves almost a ton of oil and over 120 cubic meters of water that are used to produce the empties. A small drop, of course, but the example of a sustainable approach takes on a double value because it is implemented by a school in the Portici area. This is the Santa Maria Institutes that have decided to invest in water dispensers for students and welcome kits with 100% recyclable aluminum water bottles (provided by the PCS printing center) and personalized, thus beginning the ambitious path through which they intend to become a 100% plastic-free school. 'We are deeply convinced that environmental education should start from the classrooms, to create a generation of more aware and responsible citizens,' explains the school's CEO Giovanni Mucciolo. 'The initiative to drastically reduce the use of plastic within our institutes is not just a symbolic gesture, but a concrete step towards a real change in our daily approach to the environment. Through actions like these, we want to inspire students, staff, and the entire community to reflect on the impact of our choices and to promote a more sustainable future.' Echoing him is the principal of the Institutes, Vanna Esposito: 'The decision to transform the Santa Maria Institutes into a completely plastic-free reality reflects our commitment not only to educational excellence but also to environmental responsibility. With the adoption of water dispensers and the distribution of recyclable water bottles, we intend not only to reduce our ecological impact but also to educate our students on respect and care for our planet. This initiative is the result of the collaboration of our entire school community and represents a model of sustainability that we hope will be taken as an example and replicated by others.'