It is very important, especially now, that each person in society does their part recycling, and protecting out enviornment. For the past 3 years of my high school career I have listen and learned from the educators who teach me, that recycling should be among some of our highest priorities to take note of during our every day life. They set aside certain days and weeks, and hang posters around the school that encourage us to make that extra few steps to the recycling bin. Sounds like your average school, right? Wrong. Although they are trying to make us aware of the importance of recycling, I have recently learned, that all of those papers and plastic bottles we've been recycling... Make their way straight to where all of the other garbage ends up! I was sitting in my drivers ed theory class when I first witnessed for myself what was going on when nobody was around. It was after school hours, probably close to 4:00 when the janitor walked in and took the garbage from the pail, and tossing it into a large trash can on wheel. Then, a moment later she came back in and put the contents of the recycling bin in the same place! I was shocked at what I was seeing, and more then anything I was confused. How could a school so determined to make us aware of the importance of things like recycling, not be doing it themselves? I was determined to figure out what was going on, So I brought it up with one of my teachers. I was expecting her too, to be suprised but instead she looked at me and said, "I know, They do it all the time."

Now I was just mad. I had become very intrested in enviornmental awareness over the course of the last few months, making sure that all of my cans and bottles made it to the recycling bin weather I was in school or at home. Did you know there is over 45 million tons of plastic being produced each year, a minute fraction of which is actually being recycled? I used to be alittle more proud of myself, knowing that I have become so aware, and have made such attempts to recycle myself. But the fact that I belong to a school, whose teachings to us arent ideas they follow themselves is almost disguisting.

If your going to teach young people around you the importance of things like recycling, do me a favor, teach yourselves first.