In honor of their significant contributions to "green programs" in AUSD and across Alameda, the  US Department of Education is including both Bay Farm School and Edison Elementary School on this year's Green Strides Tour. 

The Green Strides Tour highlights the achievements of schools that have received federal Green Ribbon Schools (ED-GRS) awards for school sustainability. It is intended to promote state and local collaboration regarding school facilities, health, and environmental education. By highlighting schools, districts, and postsecondary institutions’ cost-saving, health promoting, and performance-enhancing sustainability practices, ED-GRS celebrates these schools and brings more attention to their work.

This year's tour has a theme of "School Climate Solutions" and will wind through central and northern California September 19 to 21. Participants include  federal and state agency officials, national, state, and local legislators, elected officials, and other community partners. The tour will stop in Alameda on September 19.

ED-GRS honorees have shown progress in each of the following areas: 1) reducing environmental impacts and costs; 2) improving health and wellness; and 3) offering effective environmental and sustainability education.

Bay Farm School received the award in 2016 for its innovative efforts that include: 

• Lobbying AUSD for fresh salad bars
• Helping to initiate and now model AUSD’s Go Green recycling and compost program
• Developing and maintaining a school garden with a butterfly habitat, fruit trees, herbs, and vegetables that is used for teaching about environmental science, sustainable agriculture, gardening, composting, cooking, and nutrition
• Encouraging students to use alternative transportation to get to school, including walking rolling, and 2% carpooling, as well as establishing a “no idling policy” for vehicles anywhere around campus to lower local air pollution

Edison Elementary was a recipient of the award in 2020 for efforts that have included: 

• Helping to initiate and now model AUSD’s Go Green recycling and compost program
• Leading outreach efforts for the county’s Reusable Bag Ordinance
• Leading outreach efforts for the installation of three-stream recycling bins in Alameda’s downtown areas, Alameda’s “Straws on Request,”and the compostable foodware ordinance for restaurants
• Developing and maintaining a school garden with a butterfly habitat, fruit trees, herbs, and vegetables that is used for teaching about environmental science, sustainable agriculture, gardening, composting, cooking, and nutrition
• Encouraging students to use alternative transportation to get to school, including walking rolling, and 2% carpooling, as well as establishing a “no idling policy” for vehicles anywhere around campus to lower local air pollution
• The formation of a “Green Otters” student group focused on raising awareness around plastic pollution, fundraising for endangered animals, planting trees, and teaching peers about why eating too much meat is not healthy for people or the planet.

The Bay Farm tour will go from 11:45 to 1:00 pm. The Edison Elementary tour will go from 1:30 to 2:30 pm.  

The three-day tour through central and northern California also includes stops in San Francisco, Oakland, Los Altos, Woodside, Livermore, Clovis, and Atwater.