Colegio Roosevelt
Environmental Leaders in South America
School Profile
Colegio Franklin Delano Roosevelt, founded in 1946 by American residents in Peru, is a nonsectarian, non-profit, independent school. Colegio Roosevelt serves the international business and
diplomatic community, as well as host country nationals seeking an international education. The
program is co-educational, non-residential, and extends from early childhood (age 3) through twelfth
grade. Colegio Roosevelt, an International Baccalaureate (IB) World School, is accredited by the
Southern Association of Colleges and Schools and the Peruvian Ministry of Education. The
language of instruction is English and students can earn the U.S., Official Peruvian Program, and
International Baccalaureate Diplomas.
Enrollment
The total school enrollment is 1,500 with 399 students in Grades 9-12. It is noted that the Colegio
Roosevelt students that would take part in the observer delegation to the UNFCCC meetings in
Lima must be 18 years of age for the first day of the conference itself on December 1st, 2014. We
have several students that would be ideal candidates for this opportunity should our application be
accepted.
Colegio Roosevelt students come from 37 countries, with approximately 23% from the United
States, 53% from Peru, and 24% from other countries. As an international school we would ideally
like to create a delegation of Gr. 12 students in the 2nd year of the IB Environmental Systems and
Societies course representing a sampling of the diversity represented within our international
community.
Environmental Education and Sustainability at Colegio Roosevelt
“Our mission is to empower our students to pursue their passion for learning, lead lives of integrity and create socially
responsible solutions.”
– Colegio Roosevelt Mission Statement
Photo from the annual Environmental Systems and Societies Class Trip to the Peruvian Amazon via the Tambopata
River. Photo Credit – Allana Rumble
Developing sustainable systems and practices throughout our community is an ongoing process that
requires a passion for learning. Responsible integration of consideration for the environment into
decision making has helped to make Colegio Roosevelt a leader in environmental sustainability both
within South America and internationally. Throughout our campus, community and curriculum
there is evidence of commitment to the fulfillment of our mission statement in creating responsible
solutions to environmental issues.
Climate change is an issue of great importance to the city of Lima, the 2nd largest desert city in the
world. Despite the fact that Peru emits a small fraction of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions it is
one of the countries most vulnerable to the effects of climate change. The impacts, adaptation and
vulnerability of the Latin American region to climate change are unique (IPCC Impacts, Adaptation
and Vulnerability –Latin America, 2001).
A. Initiatives Related to Competency in Climate Change
Below please find a summarized table of climate change related activities undertaken by
Colegio Roosevelt in the recent past. Supporting media has been included where possible.
Our environment is a collection of systems and so our environmental education and action
is organized systematically as well. Many environmental concerns are connected to climate
change and Colegio Roosevelt community members are encouraged to see the connections
that may be implicated in systematic changes developed through environmental awareness
and action.
Area of Focus
Initiatives
A 2 kWh wind turbine, 9 m in height, was installed on the roof of our
Media Center in collaboration with a local NGO and business,
WindAid, to act as a beacon for alternative energy within our
community. The project was undertaken by all Gr. 9 Science students
during their Physics unit. Students first built small models of
functioning wind turbines to understand the process and then
contributed collaboratively in the construction of the full scale
implementation. The energy produced from the wind turbine is used
to recharge audio visual equipment within the Media Center and
reduces our reliance on energy from the grid.
2. Colegio Roosevelt was short-listed with just two other schools in the
Zayed Future Energy Prize, Global High Schools Category for the
Americas Region 2014. This annual award brings recognition to leaders
in the development of sustainable alternative energy solutions. It is
widely considered to be the largest, most prestigious award of its kind.
Our proposition for the award consists of a multi-faceted plan to
diversify our energy portfolio and to act as a model school within the
South American Region providing leadership and a proven path for
other schools to follow. Aspects of the plan include updating electrical
cables and lights to a block of classrooms and measuring the change in
energy consumption to determine the scalability of the project based
on its economic and environmental impact. A similar comparative
experiment would be done for a roof conversion incorporating solarphotovoltaic panels for another block of classrooms. Funds garnered
from the award would also go towards changing further diesel buses in
the fleet to GNV. Any additional remaining funds would go to starting
a Green Revolving Fund for the school to fund future sustainability
initiatives. It is an ambitious plan representative of the desire of the
school to be data-driven in its environmental and fiscal planning.
3. The Early Childhood Building completed in 2010 was designed
1.
Energy
By consciously diversifying our
means of energy production
away from fossil fuel
dependency we build
awareness locally and take
action internally.
4.
5.
6.
7.
architecturally to use passive heating and cooling systems to reduce
energy consumption.
A School wide event related to the WWF “Earth Hour” is conducted
annually in March to raise awareness about energy consumption and
methods to reduce these consumption levels. An Info-graphic from
March 2013 effort summarizing energy savings is attached here.
A student-led project as part of the Global Issues Network has been
implemented to convert the energy source for heating the school pool
from natural gas to solar thermal water heaters. This project was
several years in the making and required significant research, planning,
collaboration and perseverance to be actualized. The project has
received accolades locally with the project taking 1sthonorable mention
in a competition organized by the Ministry of the Environment for
Peru, a local University PUCP and a corporate sponsor. The project
installed in October 2013 is set to decrease carbon emissions by 75
metric tons/yr., while saving upwards of $20,000 USD annually in gas
bills. This project was also part of the initial application for the Zayed
Future Energy Prize outlined below.
A detailed Green House Gas Emissions Audit and report was
completed by Roosevelt Community Member Yoca-Arditi Rocha as
part of her Harvard Sustainable Development Course in 2013. This
audit allowed us to determine the main contributors to our carbon
footprint and to develop a plan to reduce emissions in the future. The
full report is hyperlinked. An info-graphic summarizing key findings
shared across our community is also linked.
In the 2012-2013 School year our Board initiated and approved the
replacement of five diesel powered, higher-polluting, buses in the
school’s transportation fleet with natural gas vehicles (GNV) in effort
to reduce costs and carbon emissions.
Implemented in 2010 across the Colegio Roosevelt campus are
recycling stations to receive plastic, paper and tetra pack materials.
2. Paper recycling is completed in collaboration with Fundades, a local
non-profit organization that uses funds created through the paper
collection to support the educational needs of disadvantaged youth.
3. All of the organic food waste generated on campus is composted in
one of several underground eco-silos that produce organic composting
soil for our organic community garden.
4. Our Colegio Roosevelt Tech Team, a group of administrators
responsible for on-campus technology, has been part of the Hewlett
Packard Planet Partners Recycling Program since 2008. Through
this program our school safely recycles both computer equipment and
printing supplies.
1.
Waste
By working to reduce the
amount of waste produced,
and to reuse or recycle what
we do consume we release
fewer emissions overall.
As an IB World School the Environment is an Area of Interaction
integrated into student learning throughout the Primary Year and
Middle Year Programs.
2. Environmental projects completed within the IB program by students
in the Middle Years Program have included the creation of a rooftop
garden, the publication of a photo-journalism story on the
environmental impact of the Inter-Oceanic highway between Peru and
Brazil. A moving personal project from this past October 2013 is a
1.
Curriculum/Exemplars
of Colegio Roosevelt
Student Work
To be effective environmental
leaders Colegio Roosevelt
coordinates a rich
environmental curriculum
which inspires exemplary
student work.
photo exhibit produced by Gr. 10 student and gifted photographer
Gabriel Barreto documenting the beauty and devastation of Peru’s
main mountain, costal and jungle regions.
At the Diploma (Gr. 11-12 Level) students have completed projects
such as the in-depth analysis of the interaction of humidity and sunlight
in the production of ground level ozone in Lima. Additional recent
Extended Essays (4,000 word Independent Projects) completed in the
Environmental Systems and Societies subject at Colegio Roosevelt
include a study of the effect of terracing on nutrients, yield and
economic benefits in an area of Peru as well as a separate comparative
study on the potential for bio-fuels produced from sugar cane or algae
within Peru.
3. The IB Diploma Environmental Systems and Societies course has been
offered since 2009 to Gr. 11 and 12 students with approximately 4050% of students choosing the course as a diploma subject. Here is a
link to our online course page.
4. Highlights of experiential field trips offered by Roosevelt engaging
students in environment include; a Gr. 3 field trip to the local waste
water treatment plant as well as a neighboring area of the city where
people live without municipal water access, Gr. 7 Classroom without
Walls trip to Amazonian Rainforest in Iquitos, Peru, and a 6 day, 5night adventure to a research center in remote Peruvian Rainforest in
the Tambopata Conservation area of Peru for Gr. 11 IB
Environmental Systems and Societies and IB Biology students. During
this field trip students complete research projects of their own design.
The area is extremely remote and new discoveries are made on a
regular basis.
5. Gr. 8 Humanities students complete an extensive unit on water and its
connection to society. Students meet with experts from a variety of
water related organizations to develop solutions to water issues at the
local level. One of the recent experts included, Eduardo Gold, a World
Bank Prize winner for his innovative solution to melting tropical
glaciers. See this BBC news story for more.
The High School Eco-Club works to; monitor the effectiveness of the
recycling systems on campus, work in conjunction with Comando
Ecologico (a local group working on reforestation for carbon
sequestering), and conduct regular awareness campaigns on a variety of
environmental issues.
2. The GO3 (Ground Level Ozone) Club collects scientific data related
to ground level ozone levels within the city and uploads this to Google
Earth as part of a global project to monitor levels of this pollutant.
GO3 also monitors the black carbon levels for the city and creates
awareness and action campaigns on both of these issues for the
community.
3. The Gardening Club is a group of students that work to plant, grow,
and harvest organic crops while maintaining the school’s community
garden. They also undertook and completed the construction of a
community greenhouse for the development of seedlings and for use in
scientific experiments.
4. Planeta Oceano is an international organization with a chapter at
Roosevelt that works to raise awareness on environmental issues
1.
Extra-Curricular
Colegio Roosevelt students
pursue their passion for
environmental stewardship
inside and outside the
classroom.
connected to the ocean such as biodiversity and conservation.
The Global Issues Network group works to engage students in
developing solutions to global issues. Students identify an issue,
develop a solution and create a forty-five minute presentation for
delivery at an annual international conference with other student
leaders. Several of the global issues are environmentally based such as
global climate change and maritime protection.
6. World Wildlife Foundation-this club was newly formed in August
2013 and students are currently investigating the best ways to
contribute to their programs.
5.
1.
Food
All systems are viewed as
integrated. When we produce
food locally we reduce
transportation emissions.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Purchasing
Efficient electrical hand dryers
decrease deforestation rates.
All of the organic food waste generated on campus is composted in
one of several underground eco-silos that produce organic composting
soil for our organic community garden.
Food grown in the school garden has been donated to the food kiosks
for use in food for sale on campus.
The current lunch provider uses reusable serving dishes to reduce the
packaging waste produced.
Unhealthy food options were removed from campus and replaced with
healthier food options which consequently reduced packaging waste.
No single use plastic water or soda bottles are sold on campus.
1. Xelerator environmental hand-dryers were trialed and installed in
student and staff bathrooms as well as classrooms. Five dryers were
installed permanently after this trial and there are plans to slowly
integrate further dryers into the bathrooms and classrooms in the years
to come.
To ensure the quality of water from our drinking fountains a study was
conducted and a filter installed. Regular water quality tests are
conducted to ensure that this high quality of water is being maintained.
2. Community members are encouraged to purchase reusable personal
water bottles, also for sale in the food kiosks and refill them at any of
the water refill stations placed around campus.
1.
Water
These efforts reduce emissions
associated with packaging,
and transport of water.
Buildings and Grounds
Use
In-house carbon sink 
The school has a community garden and greenhouse used for
educational and service related projects.
2. The School uses only organic fertilizers, and works to keep fertilizing
to a minimum.
1.
Center for Green Schools/Peru Green Building Council. On
September 27th Colegio Roosevelt hosted a Green Apple Day of
Service. Details of the event are found within this student produced
article produced by Gr. 11 Student Lola Sanchez-Carrion.
2. Green Schools Alliance – Colegio Roosevelt utilizes some of the
Green Schools Alliance resources in planning sustainability initiatives
and was recognized within the site for its recent accomplishment in
becoming a finalist in the Zayed Future Energy Prize.
3. Climate Reality.org –Roosevelt parent, Green Team Member and No
Planeta B Director Yoca Arditi-Rocha is a Climate Reality trained guest
speaker. In September, 2013 she gave a guest lecture to Gr. 4-6
students on Climate Change.
4. AquaFondo –For World Water Day in March 2013 a guest speaker
1.
Connections to NGOs,
Climate Change
Organizations and the
Greater Community
A task as large resolving
Climate Change will require
significant collaboration
through a wide variety of
partners.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
from local water conservation authority AquaFondo was invited in to
speak to Gr. 8-11 students on the importance of the water quality and
water access issues within Lima, Peru. This issue is directly related to
Climate Change as Peru is home to a large percentage of the world’s
tropical glaciers which are receding rapidly with increasing global
warming.
350.org in October of 2010 Colegio Roosevelt hosted an event to
bring awareness to 350.org and the importance of bringing CO2 levels
back down to 350 ppm. The event featured everything from garden
planting to guest speaking and concluded with this group photo. In
September 2013 we united with 350.org again and Skyped in a
representative from their Minnesota branch for conversations with our
Gr 4-6 students about the importance of Lima, Peru (our city) hosting
the COP UN Climate Talks in December of 2014.
Dr. Jane Goodall/Roots and Shoots (see detailed info in Section
B.1)
International Baccalaureate – Colegio Roosevelt Sustainability
Manager and Environmental Systems and Societies (ESS)
Coordinator/Teacher Allana Rumble has been working as the IB
Americas representative with the IB ESS Curriculum review team since
October 2011 to redesign the ESS curriculum for the world. The new
course will be trialed in 2014.
Roosevelt School students that represent leaders in environmental
sustainability in education attend a local conference on Education for
Sustainable Development and present a summary of their initiatives
to other schools. This now annual event is organized by
representatives from the Latin American Heads Conference
(LAHC) and Colegio Roosevelt. We have also recently partnered with
the SES School in Minnesota, USA and have had our Gr. 12 students
skyping in with these students while in attendance at the recent COP
19 Warsaw talks. We hope very much to join them next year in Lima!
Special Events are held throughout the year to create opportunities to
develop education and awareness in a variety of environmental issues.
Each year during Earth Day over thirty student, teacher, parent and
NGO workshops are offered to Roosevelt Secondary School students.
In 2009 the School Wide Theme for the year was, “Think Green –
Act Green”. This theme brought together a large, diverse, community
towards a common purpose for a common good. The “Think Green
Act Green” organic cotton T-shirts produced during this year are still
proudly worn by students and alumni alike as an emblem of pride for
the unique leadership Colegio Roosevelt provides in environmental
stewardship.
B. Newsletters, Publications and Media Attention regarding Colegio Roosevelt
Competency in Environment Related Activities
1. Amazon Conservation Area Research Based Field Trip - Semi-annual newsletter of the
Association of American Schools in South America (AASSA) regarding the Gr. 11 IB
Environmental Systems field trip to remote Peruvian/Amazonian Rainforest –pages 57-58.
This trip is an invaluable experience in connecting students to an incredible natural
environment and the largest contiguous tropical forest remaining in the world. The Peruvian
Amazon faces a number of threats including deforestation and extensive illegal mining
operations. The extent of the damage to the Amazon through illegal gold mining has only
recently been realized. This news footage from September 2013 documents aerially the level
of deforestation and pollution occurring to an essential global treasure. Through this
experiential, research oriented, field trip experience students explore the threats and the
methods of protection for this wild place. The protection of one of the world’s largest
carbon sinks has direct and obvious ties to mitigating climate change.
http://www.aassa.com/uploaded/AASSA_Newsletters/Archived_Newsletters/May_
Newsletter_2012.pdf
2. Colegio Roosevelt: A Center for Learning and Environmental Leadership -“Amazon
Gold” Documentary Film Screening – On November 19th,2013 Colegio Roosevelt hosted a
special advance screening of the documentary, “Amazon Gold” through the support of the
film’s producer Sarah DuPont and the US Business Council. Several area schools were
invited to the screening as well as representatives from the US Embassy and the Peruvian
Ministry of Energy and Mines. This special screening also included a Question and Answer
Period with one of Peru’s leading conservation biologists, Enrique Ortiz, featured within the
film. This award-winning documentary documents the devastation that illegal gold mining is
having within Peru’s rainforest. There are future plans in the works for Colegio Roosevelt
students to become further involved in the research and conservation efforts of this
remarkable, intrinsically climate-change related, region.
Also on November 19th, 2013 Colegio Roosevelt was honored to host a guest lecture from
the world famous, well-respected, conservation biologist Dr. Jane Goodall. Dr. Goodall
addressed a fortunate audience of 400 Gr. 5, 6 and 11-12 students on the importance of
preserving wild places and the creatures that inhabit them. These two events were purposely
orchestrated within the same timeframe to encourage students to make the connections
between biodiversity and conservation and the immediacy of addressing these situations in
their own country. All Earth’s systems are connected. When we protect habitats, we protect
important carbon sinks as well. The full lecture may be viewed via this link (“Jane
Presentation”) which was shared to the entire Colegio Roosevelt community.
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/fdr-live-events
3. Ground Level Ozone (GO3) Pollution Monitoring and Publication – Since September
2011 Colegio Roosevelt has been a regular contributor to a global pollution monitoring
program called GO3 Ground Level Ozone monitoring. Specialized equipment was installed
and is maintained to ensure that every 15 minutes data concerning local weather as well as
ground level ozone concentrations is uploaded via Google Earth to a global, publically
accessible data-base. Ground level ozone is an important pollutant linked to local air quality.
Via this hyperlink please find attached a graph illustrating very recent data. A student group
works to maintain the equipment and to analyze the results. As you can see from our school
performance records from 2011 to current we work actively to be reliable scientific reporters.
We are still incorporating regular black carbon results into our readings as well. Both ground
level ozone and black carbon may be linked to climate change and the regular monitoring of
these pollutants at the local level helps to contribute to comparative global understanding.
4. Accolades for Excellence in Environmental Leadership - An extensive summary of
media related to the finalist status of Colegio Roosevelt in the Zayed Future Energy Prize
2014 is attached. Our Zayed Future Energy Prize application is outlined in greater detail
above in the Energy Initiatives section A2.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B2Tbd0COdntNzBQdWFQcGNlNkE/edit?usp=sharing
5. Green Team Newsletters for Community Communication - A bi-monthly
newsletter is sent out to all Colegio Roosevelt Green Team members. The Green
Team is a collaborative collection of Roosevelt Community members including
students, parents, teachers, leadership team members, alumni and more. This
newsletter communicates highlights from recent environmental/sustainability
initiatives as well as advertises the upcoming agenda points to be discussed as the
next meeting. All Colegio Roosevelt members are welcome and encouraged to
attend. A sample of the newsletters may be found here.
6. International Baccalaureate Leadership - Colegio Roosevelt is an International
Baccalaureate (IB) world school. The IB program is internationally recognized for
its rigor. “Founded in 1968, we [The IB] currently work with 3,677 schools
in 146 countries to develop and offer four challenging programs to
over 1,139,000 students aged 3 to 19 years.” (IBO, 2013) In November 2013 Colegio
Roosevelt was selected to be a featured school in the IB Global News for its
environmental leadership. The full article may be found here on pages 14-15.
http://enewsletters.ibo.org/i/207213/2
7. Global Issues Network - In October 2011 Colegio Roosevelt hosted the 1st ever
Global Issues Network conference on the South American continent. The mission
statement for the Global Issues Network is; The Global Issues Network (GIN)
empowers young people to collaborate locally, regionally and globally to create
solutions for global issues. Climate Change is one of the primary issues identified by
the conference scope. A Colegio Roosevelt GIN project, “The Power of the Sun”
Project to convert natural gas heating for the pool to solar thermal has been
implemented in full and is receiving significant media attention. During the Colegio
Roosevelt GIN Conference over three hundred student leaders from across the
Americas came together to present their solutions to issues of global importance
and to be inspired by the ideas of others. Three articles were published in the semiannual AASSA newsletter in December of 2011 in regards to this event and may be
accessed via this link on pages 4-8.
http://www.aassa.com/uploaded/AASSA_Newsletters/Archived_Newsletters/AASS
A_Newsletter_Dec_2011.pdf
8. Global Issues and Global Collaboration – This experience is included as it is global
collaboration that is the final obstacle in making genuine progress in developing
solutions to global climate change. We understand the cause, we have the solutions,
and it is the need for global consensus on how to implement solutions that remains as
the final hurdle.
Since the October 2011 GIN conference Colegio Roosevelt has supported the hosting
of GIN conferences in Sao Paulo, Brazil, San Jose, Costa Rica (The 1st ever in Central
America), and Quito, Ecuador with the maximum number of teams in attendance.
These GIN conferences, much like COP Talks, allow representatives from various
nations and perspectives to come together and work collaboratively on issues of
global importance. The founding of this initiative for the region is one of our
proudest accomplishments to date.
Two Colegio Roosevelt GIN Teams have been recognized internationally for their
efforts by the TIE care and AASSA Global Citizens Award.
In March 2012 The Colegio Roosevelt TASERS (Technology Association for
Students) received this award for their work in bridging the digital divide at local
schools (page 4).
http://www.aassa.com/uploaded/AASSA_Newsletters/Archived_Newsletters/AASS
A_March_Newsletter_2012.pdf
In March 2013 the Colegio Roosevelt Un Techo Para Mi Pais group received the
award for their efforts in eradicating poverty through the construction of
emergency housing in impoverished areas (page 3)
http://www.aassa.com/uploaded/AASSA_Newsletters/Archived_Newsletters/Marc
h_2013_AASSA_Newsletter.pdf
This speaks to the ongoing commitment the school has to excellence in developing
socially responsible solutions within the South American region.
9. Developing Student Environmental Journalism/Connecting to Community – On
September 27th, 2013 Colegio Roosevelt hosted a Green Apple Day of Service in
collaboration with the Peru Green Building Council. The event consisted of a wide
variety of programs to involve the entire Roosevelt community. A Gr. 11 ESS
student was inspired to write an article about the Peru Green Building Council as a
result of her experiences at the event. Colegio Roosevelt acts as a center of resources
and inspiration for the greater community in issues relating to environmental
leadership.
http://www.peruthisweek.com/the-break-the-green-building-council-developingsustainable-facilities-for-future-generations-101052
10. Sustainability within the Roosevelt Mission and Vision – Sustainability is an
integral part of the Roosevelt Mission and Vision. It is a daily part of a Colegio
Roosevelt’s student life. When our website was recently restructured a conscious
choice was made to place “Sustainability” within the Student Life section of our
portal to the world. Our progress in this regard has been so significant even within
the last year that a significant update to the site is required and this will be
conducted within the next few months with the support of student leadership.
http://www.amersol.edu.pe/student-life/sustainability/index.aspx
A summary of our sustainability initiatives (including Climate Change related
activities) is recorded on our Think Green- Act Green blog, which is updated by a
team of student environmental leaders. Work is currently underway for a complete
revamping of this media outlet. http://blog.amersol.edu.pe/green_team/
The school has also fostered the development of the Sustainability Management
position within Leadership in the school for the 2013-2014 Academic year. To our
knowledge Colegio Roosevelt is the only educational institution within South
America to have a Sustainability Manager. Having a role within the school dedicated
to the research and development of the school’s sustainability initiatives speaks to
the school’s commitment to this area. It is hoped that the results from this role will
inspire other educational institutions to follow suit.
To further understand the dynamic educational leadership that is Colegio Roosevelt
please examine the promotional content attached here. Within these informational
clips the school’s environmental leadership and innovation are organically
incorporated.