Students from Parkview Public School's Green Team plant flowers. The school won $20,000 for their environmental efforts. (Submitted)   An elementary school in Komoka, Ont. is being rewarded for its environmental prowess, winning a $20,000 grant from Staples Canada to go toward new technology.   Staples' Superpower your School Contest is an annual campaign that hands out $400,000 to 20 schools across the country. Parkview Public School is one of two elementary schools in Ontario that won this year.   "It's a tremendous recognition for the Parkview community," said Julia Schmalz, the principal at Parkview Public School. "It's not just our students, but our staff and even our parents, and as a community as a whole, we're excited to have been chosen for this grant."   To be considered for the contest, schools have to meet three environmental attributes:  

• Making a positive environmental impact through projects and programs.
• Making environmentally responsible behaviour part of everyday school life.
• Displaying a long-term commitment to supporting a healthier environment.

  Parkview students start their environmental journey as early at kindergarten, where students hatch salmon eggs, grow the fish and then release them near Sarnia. They've established a Green Team which boasts about 60 environmentally engaged students. There are also outdoor classrooms for students to explore and investigate the world around them.   The Green Team was started by Grade 6 teacher Deb Perkins. She said that when she began teaching at Parkview 15 years ago, the only environmental initiative was paper recycling. Students upcycle used markers, grow plants in a hydroponic garden and plant gardens outside of the school. (Submitted)   "Fast forward to 2020, now we are recycling almost everything, upcycling, the community is bringing in batteries, cartridges, saving pop tabs for wheelchairs," said Perkins. "The upcycling's a big one. We can generate a little bit of money with snack pouches, we collect thousands of those and send them off to TerraCycle."   One of the school's most impactful initiatives is their composting cones, which students use to compost food scraps, reducing the school's waste from snacks and lunches. With over 650 students attending Parkview, the Green Team also encourages students to pack litterless lunches.   In addition to their conservation efforts, students are also learning how to grow plants. Some are using hydroponics indoors, while others are planting gardens outside of the school.   The Staples contest prize will be used to purchase items such as Chromebooks to support ongoing learning.   "My Green Team is usually about 60 members, so we're quite large, and to get that technology fast in their hands, it needs to be accessible and portable," said Perkins. "That's where the money's going to go."   Perkins says Green Team members do walk-a-bouts to the classrooms and do audits for conserving energy and minimizing waste.   "What we'd like to do is start weighing the garbage bins in the classrooms, tracking it, and we can turn it into math lessons for the teachers to see how much they've reduced their waste," she said.   The Staples contest is held in collaboration with EcoKids and Earth Day Canada to mark Earth Month.