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McDougle Elementary fifth-grader starts new environmental initiative

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Joe Palladino speaks about the recent initiative begun by Dagan Foreman, a fifth grade student, to reduce the use of single-use plastics in the cafeteria on Feb. 18, 2020. Palladino is the  Cafeteria Manager at McDougle Elementary School.

One student at McDougle Elementary School spearheaded a new initiative to stop the use of plastic silverware in the cafeteria.

In October 2019, Dagan Foreman, a fifth-grader, decided to email his principal and ask if he could pay for some metal silverware for the cafeteria. He did his own research and even made a cost analysis spreadsheet that compared the costs of buying plastic versus silverware, his fifth-grade teacher Courtney Hines said.

Foreman said he started thinking about this project during summer and he did research during that time.

“Me and my brother, we had just heard about Greta Thunberg and we were thinking of a way to help out the environment,” Foreman said. “The first thing that we thought about was metal silverware.”

This year, Hines and his other fifth-grade teacher, Katie Nicholson Maher, are using posters from a campaign called "We The Future" put together by Amplifier, an organization that promotes grassroots movements. The campaign consists of 10 posters of young leaders representing diverse movements that are already building a better world, according to Amplifier's website.

“The one in particular that was about the environment was Xiuhtezcatl Martinez,” Hines said. “When we did that circle in class, you could tell that Dagan was just amped up and excited.”

After Foreman sent his email, McDougle Elementary school principal Aisha Howard communicated with him back and forth about the details of the project, and eventually, she set up meetings with cafeteria manager Joe Palladino and assistant cafeteria manager Antonio Campbell.

“Normally it’s an adult that asks us to do something, so when this little kid asked to see us, it was pretty neat,” Palladino said. “It was cool for a child that young to present that to us, so, you know, we told him that if he had any more great ideas to come talk to us.”

The project was then presented to Liz Cartano, Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools director of dining .

“(Foreman and Howard) really did their homework ahead of time,” Cartano said. “They really made it tough to say no because they were already too invested.”

On Jan. 23, Foreman gave a presentation to everyone in the elementary school where he explained the new initiative and how he thought of it. 

Five days later, the new metal silverware was rolled out into the cafeteria. 

Howard said the elementary school students have to follow a few rules in order to make sure that the pilot program is a success. 

The students are not allowed to take the silverware outside of the cafeteria, so if the teacher is having lunch in the room, the children will have to use plastic silverware, Howard said. 

So far, there has been only a positive response to this project, Campbell and Howard said.

“It helps out a lot, and a lot of the kids really like it because it’s easier to cut through stuff with metal than it is plastic,” Campbell said. “It’s just helping out a lot with the environment.”

Howard said the school plans to take a look at the program after a few months to see if they lost any silverware. When they see how much silverware they have to replace, they will evaluate the cost-effectiveness of the program.

Both Cartano and Howard said they’ve received many emails from students at the school about their ideas for other new initiatives, and Nicholson Maher said this could be because the kids have been inspired.

“He and the other students were inspired by the people in the We the Future posters, but now the other students are being inspired by him which is really cool,” Nicholson Maher said. “So I think he is kind of feeling the power that he has with that as well.”

Throughout the entire experience of rolling out this project, Howard said this project has changed Foreman for the better.

“It’s fun. If you would have known him last year, he’s like a completely different kid,” Howard said. “He’s kind of quiet and unique in his own way. I think something like this boosted his confidence and made him realize that he could have an impact even though he’s only 10 or 11 years old.”

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At the end of the day, Foreman said his project is rooted in concern for the future.

“We only have one planet to live, and we should keep it healthy,” Foreman said.

@kecarpenter1

@DTHCityState | city@dailytarheel.com 

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