Students are taking the lead on environmental projects in our community.
Our OHS Youth Sustainability Leaders are developing exciting environmental projects that will benefit our school and the wider Onehunga community. Through the Youth Sustainability Leadership (YSL) programme, run by local council-funded organisation Tāmaki WRAP, students are learning how to plan, fund and lead their own sustainability initiatives. The programme brings together students from local schools once a term, providing opportunities to work together, share ideas and develop leadership skills.
On Thursday 22 October, Maya Mendis, Harley Taufelila, Joseph Nathan, Arlo Gould, Addy Girvan and Isla Denne attended the YSL Hui at the Onehunga Recycling Centre. Our students are taking on important leadership roles, including mentoring younger students from local primary and intermediate schools and developing projects that will continue into 2027.
One of their major initiatives is a moth plant removal competition for the Onehunga community. Moth plant is an invasive weed that threatens native plants, and our students want to encourage local schools and families to help remove it. They are organising funding for prizes, planning promotional campaigns and exploring how our new House system could encourage OHS students to get involved.
Another project involves restoring a local community garden, just a short walk from OHS. Students have already begun collecting seeds and are planning a school-wide planting day in 2027. They hope to involve more students in caring for the garden, with opportunities to earn House points through their contributions.
What is particularly valuable about YSL is that students are managing these projects themselves. They are applying for funding, organising teams, managing budgets and developing their own ideas. We are already seeing these skills put into practice at OHS through initiatives such as our student-led composting project.
Thank you to Ms Plowman for supporting our Youth Sustainability Leaders. We look forward to seeing these projects develop and more of our students getting involved in 2027!
