This Environmental Stewardship Guide is published to provide the CMS community information and insights on the CMS environmental footprint. It includes examples of the district's environmental performance and offers examples of the efforts you can make to foster stewardship action in your own activities at home, school, and work.
The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education formalized the CMS commitment to environmental stewardship in Board Policy ECF, "Environmental Stewardship" (p. 2). The Superintendent has furthered this commitment by including environmental stewardship in the internationally recognized ISO 14001 standard and is tailored to have environmental stewardship integrated into the everyday business of the district (p. 4).
Environmental Stewardship requires the wide-ranging engagement of staff, students and the community. The district's goals to reduce utility consumption and pollution by 20%, and solid waste by 5% by June 2014 are possible through your input, participation and leadership. The snapshot below illustrates the magnitude of the district's environmental footprint.