Eve Hill radiates enthusiasm and pride when she speaks of her work as co-leader of Palmerston North Girls’ High School’s (PNGHS) Enviro Group.
She has been involved in the group since Year 9. Now in Year 12, Eve is committed to moving the school towards solar energy, which she says will require “two years of meetings, but we will get there”. She is also keen to get Year 9 students actively involved in sustainability-linked activities.
This year has been an auspicious one for PNGHS as it became the first secondary school in Manawatū to achieve its status as a green-gold enviroschool.
This was the result of more than 30 years of work, with pioneering teachers such as Dr Heather Meikle and, most recently, Jenny Slade helping to push this forward.
Both women say the work has been student-led. Without the hard work and enthusiasm of students such as Eve and her co-leader Maddi Coenders, the school would not have the environmental and sustainability lens and credence it does.
