Interview Questions/Answers

Elissa Reineck
Sustainability Project Manager
Howard County Office of Community Sustainability
January 9, 2018

1. I saw that you were involved with the 20 Minute Cleanup project back in 2013. Our
environmental club occasionally hosts cleanups on our school grounds, but
unfortunately we never get a big turnout. What are some ways we can increase interest
among students and get them more involved in sustainable practices?

I have been running the 20 Minute Cleanup since 2010. The next one will be in April 2018.
Cleanups can be done any day in April. I would love for Glenelg High School to participate this
year – especially if you are doing cleanups already.

For school cleanups, some things that have worked to increase participation are:

Offer service hours – there may be interest by a group like NHS where people are looking for
hours. At the highs school level there are also sometimes students who didn’t go to middle
school in HoCo and so they have to make up the service hours on their own. The guidance
counselors usually know who these students are.

Another thing that has worked at school is to make it part of a class project. High school is
difficult for this because sometimes the curriculum is jam packed. But it would be worth asking
the AP Environmental Science teacher if she/he would be interested in doing a cleanup. 9th
grade Earth Science might also be a good idea. At a few schools, teachers have offered extra
credit if students do cleanups around their houses/neighborhoods. Students can bring in a
form/note signed by a parent that they have done the cleanup and/or can provide a photo.

In general, it is just reality that there are only certain people who are willing to participate in
litter cleanups. The main way you can increase participation is to make participating super
easy. That’s the gist of the 20 Minute Cleanup – it is not for the diehard volunteer who will
come out to a stream cleanup for several hours. It is for the school, business, government
office that wants to get outside for a few minutes, do something good as a team and not over-
think it. Sharing photos helps and thanking people also helps.

2. What is the Howard County Government doing to improve indoor and outdoor school
environments?

The school system and the rest of the county government are actually quite separate. The
school board, superintendent and HCPSS staff take care of the schools. The Grounds
Department and Facilities takes care of the buildings and the properties. They are stretched
pretty thin, but they are open to improvements if there is a good chance that whatever it is will
be maintained. It’s not really fair to add good ideas to the schools such as gardens, outdoor
classrooms, etc, and then expect that the school system will automatically just add it to their
work

In our office, we work with schools by doing presentations, working with interns and
sometimes we improve the outdoor environment. I am involved with a project called Students
Branching Out. This is a partnership between several HoCoGov offices. We’ve planted trees
at several schools and continue to plant trees at a rate of about 2 schools per year (one spring
and one fall). Students Branching Out is a re-forestation project. What I mean by that is that
we are creating wild forest, not landscaped areas with trees. We aim to decrease the amount
of area that is mowed. This helps to reduce the maintenance cost and decreases the fuel used
for mowing. Trees do not require much maintenance and we have learned over the years that
as long as we plant trees in an out of the way place, there aren’t too many complaints when the
area stops being mowed.

On indoor improvements, I would take a look at the HCPSS website and individual school
websites. In the last couple of years, HCPSS has implemented the IEQ program. (http://
ghs.hcpss.org/environment) I suggest that you ask your school administration about the walk-
throughs and you should participate in one if you can.

Local non-profits also help improve school facilities and grounds. The non-profit group
Howard County Conservancy implements the Watershed Report Card program and those
reports often have actions that can help improve the schools’ environment.

3. How long would it take to approve my vertical garden for the school and are there any
other concerns I know about before starting a project of this size?

That depends. I would give it as much lead time as possible – a couple months probably. First
you have to find the right person. I’d start with getting your idea as solid as you can – cost,
where it would go, who is going to take care of it and the benefits. Also try and anticipate
potential problems. It would be great if you had a long-term plan for on-going maintenance.
Interested students graduate and interested teachers move on/retire and then the projects get
neglected unless it becomes part of the school culture to incorporate it into what is done at the
school.

You probably need to start with approval of the principal and she/he will let you know what
approvals would be needed from HCPSS. Based on my experience with the IEQ I participated
in at Dunloggin MS, the “enforcement” of indoor air quality measures is somewhat up to the
principal’s discretion. For example, there are rules about soft items like beanbag chairs and
stuffed animals, but they can be allowed in certain areas if there is a good reason (e.g., special
needs students, counseling, etc).

Let’s discuss the size you are talking about. Sometimes it’s better to start small and I’m not
sure of your timeline.

4. What are some ways I can get funding for my project, and who should I ask?

I suggest asking the parent/teacher organizations. You could also ask plant nurseries for
donations. I believe that big box stores like Home Depot have a formal process where they will
donate items to non-profit groups. You could also see if there is an environmental club that
would be willing to help out.

You may also want to reach out to the Howard County Master Gardeners or local garden clubs.
They may be able to ask their members to share indoor plants. If given enough notice, they
may be able to propagate new plants from their existing ones.

Depending on the scale of you project, if there is a structure that could be built, a local Scout
troop may be willing to build something with you. Depends on your timing – an Eagle Scout
project might be a good fit and usually the Eagle Scout helps with coming up with funding.

Local civic groups such as Rotary clubs may also be willing to help.

5. Do you know any experts or people I can talk to for information about vertical gardens
and innovative horticulture?

I don’t personally know of any experts or of any indoor vertical gardens in Howard County or
closeby. That would be a great thing to find out if you can research it. I wonder if you could
reach out to commercial property managers and developers to see if they have installed large
ones in retail/commercial spaces.

I recommend the University of Maryland Extension Home and Garden Information Canter as a
good place to start on research too - https://extension.umd.edu/hgic.

On our website www.livegreenhoward.com, we have an Indoor Air Quality page that includes
this link to plants that improve air quality - https://www.mnn.com/health/healthy-spaces/
photos/15-houseplants-for-improving-indoor-air-quality/a-breath-of-fresh-air

I wonder if any plant science programs and local colleges/universities would be a good
resource? I think HCC is adding or has recently expanded Plant Science.

6. There have been multiple complaints about mold and air quality issues in our school
and around the county. What is your opinion on this issue/problem and what can we do
to fix it?

It’s my opinion that HCPSS has already done a lot to address concerns about indoor air quality
at schools. My personal opinion is that portables continue to be a challenge because their
design and maintenance are not as good as the main buildings.

In researching the vertical garden idea, I suggest that you pay close attention to what the
plants would do. Indoor air quality means different things to different people. Plants that take
in “pollution” are generally referring to chemicals in the air. I’m not sure about mold. It may
actually be that by introducing soil and water into an indoor environment, that it would actually
have the potential to make that aspect of indoor air quality worse instead of better. It might be
good to keep an open mind about steps that could be taken to improve indoor air quality
beyond the vertical garden idea.