Sustainability at Graded

Sustainability Statement

Graded's goal is to educate and actively engage members of our diverse and connected community to reduce their impact on the environment and develop lifelong sustainability practices. As a school, we understand that our institutional actions play a role in global environmental outcomes. We are committed to modeling practices on our campus that help foster a more sustainable future.

Partnership

Graded has forged a partnership with firm Reconectta, a B-certified social enterprise, to help our school institutionalize our commitment to the environment and fulfill the moral imperative that we, as educators, have to promote a more equitable and sustainable society.

Over the past several decades, social-environmental issues have been brought to the forefront of public awareness. We recognize the tremendous importance of sustainability education in schools. We believe that by immersing our students in current events, global movements, and socio-environmental challenges, we can help influence behavior and promote the importance of sustainability in their daily lives.

Reconectta's team of educators, environmental engineers, and biologists will work closely with Graded students, faculty, and staff to ensure the success of our sustainability-focused curriculum. Our initiatives will bring us closer to achieving the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), a set of 17 global goals that identify priorities and recommend measures for the development of a better, more sustainable world by 2030.

Graded will continue to explore innovative, collaborative ways to affect positive change and help improve our global environmental outlook.

OPERATIONAL
EDUCATIONAL

OPERATIONAL

SOLAR PANELS

Two solar heating systems were installed on the Graded Athletics Center roof during the facility’s 2018 construction. The first system heats our swimming pool. The second system heats the water for the Athletics Center locker room showers.

SCHOOL ENERGY SUPPLY

In 2019, Graded migrated to a new energy supply system, Mercado Livre de Energia, which allows the school to choose a clean source of energy from various sustainable sources such as wind, solar, or biomass energy. Graded avoids using hydroelectricity, which has a greater impact on the environment.

RECYCLING AND COMPOSTING

Waste in Brazil is classified primarily as recyclable or non-recyclable. To facilitate the management and disposal of different waste materials on campus, while simultaneously teaching the Graded community about selective waste management, we have replaced our colored bins with general recycling bins. Classrooms and offices have also been equipped with recycling bins.

Furthermore, Graded has launched a composting pilot project. On average, 50% of our waste is organic and compostable. We have placed several composting bins around campus. The school will convert part of the organic waste produced into fertilizer in recently-installed composting boxes located near the Graded Learning Lab. All the fertilizer generated will be used in our green spaces.

Additional information about the composting process at Graded may be found near the composting boxes. Visit to learn more! After piloting the project, we intend to expand the scope of the composting initiative.

WATER

We monitor our water consumption monthly to avoid leaks or water loss. In addition, our faucets and toilet flush systems include a water reduction mechanism. Graded also has a reusable water system, which collects and redirects rainwater to the Athletics Center and the Main Parking Garage sewage systems.

SOLAR PANEL RECHARGING KIOSKS

Recently, two sustainable kiosks were installed outside the Cafeteria. These kiosks include solar panel-powered charging stations and beautiful hanging gardens and were designed to expand outdoor seating in a visually-appealing way.

ELECTRIC CAR CHARGING STATIONS

In 2023, Graded installed two electric car charging stations, which have the charging capacity of 7.4 KW. These chargers are located right at the entrance of our Main Parking Garage and are available for the use of our families.

The installation of these charging stations, along with our comprehensive and popular school bussing system, aims to support our community members in making environmentally sustainable transportation choices.

EDUCATIONAL

VEGETABLE GARDEN

A lower school vegetable garden enables K4, K5, and grade 1 students to plant, harvest, and eat a variety of vegetables. Students have made delicious mint tea, pesto sauce, and salad from greens grown in and picked from the garden. This project teaches children about the origin of some of their food and the workings of the natural world.

GREEN CLUB

Members of this lower school club discuss critical topics like recycling, ecosystems, and waste management. They also look after a worm compost bin and use worm humus to fertilize the lower school vegetable garden.

VERMICOMPOSTING

Vermicomposting is the process of decomposing organic waste using earthworms. Graded has implemented worm composting bins in several lower school classrooms. As part of the new sustainability initiative, teachers and students will use the new worm bins to compost food scraps from their daily in-class snacks, and the resulting humus will then be used to fertilize the lower school vegetable garden.

WASTE MANAGEMENT EDUCATION

An effective selective waste management program requires educating the population on where and how to dispose of different kinds of waste adequately. Middle school students have begun an initiative to educate the Graded community on what materials are recyclable, non-recyclable, and compostable.

TAMPINHA LEGAL

In 2022, a Graded high school student began an initiative to install Tampinha Legal collection points on campus. Plastic caps from toothpaste, soda and juice bottles, hand sanitizers, condiments, and more are collected and given to a non-profit organization registered with Tampinha Legal. The organization sorts the caps, sells them to a registered recycler, and receives 100% of the profits. The beneficiary for Graded's plastic cap collection is LASFA (Lar Sao Francisco de Assis).

LOWER SCHOOL STEM

The Lower School STEM team incorporates sustainability and environmental education into their curriculum. First-grade students build bug houses to increase the number of beneficial insects on our school grounds. Third graders learn about pollination work to design a beehive that attracts native Brazilian stingless bees. Fifth graders use recycled materials to build simple robots that collect data and clean water in the Pinheiros river.

CWW (CLASSROOM WITHOUT WALLS)

Graded School's Upper School CWW trips, a unique feature of the curriculum, incorporate sustainability as a core component and foster a love and appreciation of nature. Each year, students in grades 6-11 participate in different trips across Brazil where they might collect trash from rivers and learn about what affects water quality, interact with local communities and guides to understand the importance of preserving biodiversity, or contribute to reforestation efforts through planting trees.