Building a Change-Maker Mindset

Over the past few years ISKL has been moving steadily toward a change of thinking with regard to service. The concept is simple. Charity is helpful, and in some cases (as is the situation with disasters, for example) essential, but there charity does not, on its own, bring forth lasting change and internally motivated citizens. To internalize a service-oriented, change maker mindset one needs personal connections and a deep understanding of how service connects to a sustainable future.

Take, for example, the idea of a student wanting to help the rainforests in Borneo. Certainly there is a recognition of a larger issue at hand - deforestation and loss of habitat - which is a great starting point. The child has a sale of sorts (hopefully not through the sale of virgin rainforest paper cards) and collects money, which he/she then sends along to an organization supporting rainforests. This is a great start to being a change maker for a positive future, but an arguably incomplete one. 

Now add a bit to that. Allow the student to delve deeper into the context, to research, perhaps interview someone "on the ground". The student can also engage in identifying a authentic solution to address the issue at stake. It's a solution within his/her sphere of influence. And then, off to put the plan into action....

Last Saturday the Grade 5 Service Learning Showcase (pictures on the Sustainable ISKL Facebook page here) took place at the Melawati Studio. For those in attendance it was impressive to see the grade 5 students "doing their thing" with regard to addressing issues as varied as providing food for the homeless, supporting stray animals, giving voice to the undocumented children, healthy eating and integrating with refugee communities. Those taking the time to delve deeper would have revealed that the student participants "knew their stuff". Whether talking about how, exactly, funds to the SPCA would be used to support stray animals, to how personal decisions relate to the plight of the sun bears, to how and why to make a healthy snacks, the kids provided exceptional evidence of solid learning.

More importantly, the showcase was a great step to supporting the growth of a service learning mindset at Melawati. Younger students, teachers, parents and staff roamed the studio for several hours. The buzz was impressive but not quite as impressive as the recognition of what such events can do for a school community. How wonderful to have our little ones can roam the room and recognize just how much was done in the service of others. One can imagine how, with some guided inquiry from a teacher, these visiting students can recognize their own personal potential as a change maker in their family, their school, their community. 

The Showcase was also a chance to take baby steps in recognizing that service to others need not be charity. The students themselves might not know it, but service learning is also a valuable tool to breaking down barriers, to "levelling the playing field" as they say, and to gently move away from the "us and them" dichotomy that makes charity a tricky learning tool sometimes. In the end, we will do great things - like changing the world for the better - if we have a conviction to make positive change, we recognize our personal potential and we know how to use the tools to make it so. It's already happening. :-)

Earth Week: What is Sustainability?

Often people will ask that very question: What is sustainability?  Other times people will assume that it's helping the environment, pure and simple. But the reality is that it's much more complex than that. This past week - Earth Week - we had the pleasure of welcoming Kate O'Connell (Compass Education), an elementary school teacher who uses tools whose focus is education for sustainability, to conduct a workshop for 14 of our ES teachers. 

The premise is that sustainability is essentially the interplay of different elements - in this case Nature, Economy, Society and Wellbeing (N,E,S and W) - in a systematic manner. Much of what Compass Education focuses on is the analysis of issues, trends, behaviors, etc., through the four compass points of sustainability (the N, E, S, and W) followed by the critical thinking required to determine cause-effect relationships and systems thinking. This is very similar to the ESD dimensions that we utilize at ISKL. 

What does all this have to do with our children?  Well, at ISKL many of our conversations revolving around critical thinking, ethical living, problem solving, etc., are geared around those types of sustainable thought processes. Children as young as three or four can understand the concept of cause and effect. Even before the can write they know that a seed, soil, water and sunshine can result in a beautiful plant and that can, in turn, provide seeds for future generations. Just this week, for example, our PS students just enjoyed the organic cucumbers they planted a while back!  But similar learning takes place across the entire school at developmentally appropriate levels.  

During Earth Week - and throughout the year - our classrooms conversations revolved around issues of being in the the outdoors (especially with our MS off to Malaysia Week), meat consumption (through Meatless Mondays), organic and locally produced food supply (through our very own gardens), energy, culture, human health, stress, artistic expression, culture, poverty, critical analysis of the media and a host of other meaningful educational experiences!  These are all sustainability conversations. Powerful ones.

Excellent teachers connect these conversations with sustainability thinking, add a pinch of empowerment and provide tools and processes that allow the understanding to become much, much deeper and the engagement much more meaningful. 

Earth Week is Next Week!

Earth Week 2016 is upon us once again as we move into the final weeks of April. As is customary our MS faculty and students spend the week outdoors "in the wild"!  For the rest of us it's the routine with a bit of a twist. The following events might be of particular interest to parents and community members:

• Farmer's Market & Community Recycling: Saturday, April 16 from 9:30 to 12:00 noon at the Ampang Front Parking lot. Bring your recycling and some extra cash and buy some goodies (and even eco-friendly cleaning agents)
• Meatless Monday will take place on Monday, April 18 on both campuses. On this day we inviting the community to reduce consumption of meat in support of the planet and will not be offering beef on the menu. Chicken and fish will be available.  
• Clothing Donations in support of the Chin Student Organization will be accepted all week (by the bussing lane and entrances of each campus)
• ES Uniform Swap at Melawati on Wed & Thu, April 20-21 for those with children who have outgrown their uniforms and wouldn't mind swapping it for a gently used one brought in by another family. 
• The Grade 2 Show highlighting "being green" will take place on Friday at 8:30 am in the Studio
• Feel free to visit the garden in the Ampang administration courtyard to see the MS artwork aptly named "In Celebration of the TREE"
• At any time feel free to "like" the Sustainable ISKL Facebook page (www.facebook.com/sustainableiskl) to keep up with all things "eco" and service related at school!

Of course, the best thing you, as parents, can do for your children is to lead by example and to have the meaningful conversations that are essential on growing up in a rapidly changing world. They say it takes a village to grow global citizens and what better an opportunity than to focus on the place we all call home. 

Clothing Donations at ISKL

Melawati bin: inside Exit 6 adjacent to the field

Ampang bin: Front Parking Lot

For years we've been trying to determine the best way forward for end-of-use clothing. For the past few months a number of concerned parents, our Director of Development Mr. Charles Davis and our Sustainability & Service Learning Coordinator Mr. Laurence Myers have been working on finding an on-campus solution for those families looking for a place to discard or donate clothing. 

With Earth Week just a week or so away (April 16-23) one great idea is to support the Green Council's clothing drive on the Ampang campus. The clothing donated to this initiative will be given to the Chin Students Association for the children there. The Red Hats are also rumored to be organizing a clothing drive at Melawati as well.  Then there is the ever-popular uniform swap organized by 5BW. 

For those unable to donate during Earth Week, however, we have started up a new partnership with an company named Life Line Clothing. Though they donate some clothing to charity, the majority of their work utilizes the cloth either as is or by making into other clothing items, depending on the quality of the product. Their work revolves around providing clothing to low-income markets. A portion of their proceeds go to three charitable organizations in KL. 

At ISKL we have placed two large donation bins at the following locations (pictured):

• Ampang: At the end of the Ampang front parking lot (next to the recycling tent) 
• Melawati: Inside the entrance of the bussing lane (exit 6) in the parking lot area adjacent to the field. 

Please feel free to support this program if you have uniforms with the ISKL logo or any clothing which you are comfortable donating. 

We hope that this will provide our community an avenue to donate their clothing either for the benefit of our community (as in the clothing swap), local community organizations (such as the Green Council or Red Hats initiatives) or for on-going support in regions where affordable clothing is necessary. 

Thank you for your continued support of sustainable practices and keeping useful things from the landfill. 

MS Commits to Action

Last Friday, February 5 our grade 7 global issues and MS Student Council students were busy tackling the world's problems in a practical solution-oriented way. In what we hope is just the first of many Transforming Our World conferences, close to 130 students from ISKL and MKIS addressing the UN Global Goals for sustainable development.  The end result was a series of action plans (referred to as "Commitments to Action") presented at the end of what felt like a very short day (time does fly when you're engaged)! 

What was perhaps particularly impressive about this conference was that, from start to finish, it was a student-driven conference. Of course, teachers were there to guide and support, but the conversations, research, deliberations, learning activities and presentations were all entirely the work of our students. 

Much of the feedback from both student participants and adult observers pointed to an exceptional amount of focus, hard work, collaboration and solution-oriented conversations. It spoke of meaningful conversations, concern for the world and realistic empowerment. 

The day was incredibly well organized and students were able to develop skills in research, using technology, critical thinking, communication and public speaking. The final outcomes - the presentation of Commitments to Action (which can be found here) were particularly impressive, ranging form community plans to address waste to programs to ensure opportunities for girls, education programs for island populations and many more. 

Such powerful learning experiences offer a window into the development of "responsible global citizens".  As an observer of such opportunities for authentic learning through inquiry and combining experiential, cognitive, emotional and social growth with a purpose one cannot help but feel that unwavering sense of pride in children becoming global citizens literally as they speak. 

Grade 7 "Solutionaries" Address the SGDs

Just two short months after the world's leaders adopted the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), ISKL is already empowering students to develop the skills necessary to address the world's largest issues, albeit on smaller scale. Transforming Our World (website here), is a one-day "solutionary" conference facilitated entirely by students, is aimed at the following learning outcomes for participants:

• Be introduced to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (2015-2030)
• Address a topic related to sustainable development in a meaningful way
• Develop action plans ("Commitments to action") related to a SDG
• Present action plans to an audience of peers

The event is organized in part by the MS Student Council, who is ably facilitating the opening ceremony and keynote address, the community events and the closing presentations. SDG focused workgroup are also part and parcel of the even and are all facilitated by grade 7 Global Issues students.

By the end of the day the students will have interacted with each other and with the SDGs in meaningful ways, deliberating the issues, identifying existing solutions around the world and creating a realistic action plan ("Commitment to Action") that they will present to their peers. Obviously the world cannot be changed in just one day and so the "commitments" will be passed on to trimester 3 global issues and grade 6 service learning classes as recommended starting points to service learning experiences!

A big thank you goes to the MS Student Council advisors, Ms. Feitas and Ms. Vivian, the Global Issues teachers Mr. Peters and Ms. Keithley and the MS Service Learning Coordinator, Ms. Smith. But the biggest of thank yous, of course, needs to go to the G7 Global Issues and MS Student Council students who are rising to the occasion and developing their leadership through commitment and energy in addressing such important issues with a "can do" mindset. 

What's in Another (Green) Flag?

Last Friday morning, as the the children of ISKL sat in their first block of the day, Mr. Myers was on his way west. His drive took him to Shah Alam and, specifically, to the closing events of the Eco-Schools International Conference. His role there was as a "filler" for the students but given that our high schoolers were well into "exams" mode it made more sense for him to be there in their stead. He represented ISKL proudly as the recipient of a 2nd Eco-Schools Green Flag award, the only school in Malaysia to be honored in this way. 

But though Mr. Myers stood there on his own in a sea of other recipients of different awards, he was fully aware that this was incidental. Because he was representing an able body of students - the Green Council - who have handled researched the evidence, gathered the data, communicated the results, completed the application, ran the tour and made a fine presentation to the visiting team of university professors. Certainly, there are accolades to be given to the Green Council. But it still wouldn't be enough. 

That's because the Green Council is merely a representative of our entire school's body. Their task, among other things, is to document the successes of ISKL clubs, students and classes in sustainable and service learning related projects. Though they did their job impeccably their task only revealed a small glimpse of what ISKL does on a daily basis.  It is often small things that make a community what it is. They are an often anecdotal - but no less meaningful - measure of the cumulative commitment to making positive change to the world around them. 

And so, though one man stood on the podium representing a small group of 25 students, who in turn represented several clubs and classrooms, it was all about the entire ISKL community coming together in the hallways, in the gardens, in the classrooms, in the meeting rooms and in the theatres. They come together to have conversations that are meaningful and purposeful, that are ongoing and never ending. They touch sensitivities and thoughts and empathy and attitudes. They touch teaching and learning and behaviors. And, in the end, they are transformational in that they touch our lives in millions of ways that, through collective capacity, make a lasting and important difference. 

Congratulations to all of us, young and younger, for doing the things that matter. The award is merely a recognition for all the cumulative wonderful things that you think, you say and you do to make the world a better place each and every day.

Community Engagement: In Elena's Words

The following is a post written by Elena Ortiz ('17) who worked tirelessly as a member of the organizing committee for the 24 Hour Run (to Stop the Traffic) aimed at addressing the issue of modern day slavery. Away from the eyes of most of us, she worked day after day for six months in a true collaborative project spanning a number of schools and the entire region. Her story is shared here as an example of our students' engagement with the community and a living example of ISKL's school-wide learning results. If you have a moment ask her about it and see her eyes shine with pride as she talks about it. 

Here is Elena's story, shared with her permission:

"This year I had the wonderful opportunity of being Kuala Lumpur’s Executive Director of Advocacy and Impact of the 24 Hour Race. This was both the most challenging, and eye-opening experience that I have ever undertaken. When I started my responsibilities back in May, I knew that it would be a challenge, but I had absolutely no idea just how far in over my head I was. But I was full of passion, energy, and ready to learn. Our only adult ‘supervision’ was in Hong Kong, meaning that it was up to the five of us directors to put on an entire event start to finish. And that meant everything from writing business proposals, to selecting and maintaining a partnership with beneficiaries and even trying to coordinate permits with the Malaysian government. I essentially devoted most of my life to trying to keep up with its mountain of demands, and cannot count the times where my teachers have caught me formatting the financial spreadsheet instead of doing math problems or finishing my essay. 

The factor that drove me most was knowing the impact that I was having. Human slavery is one of the biggest problems in the world, claiming the lives of 35 million people and plaguing every single country. The industry is a 150 billion dollar problem that nobody is talking about. Knowing in the back of my head that my efforts were helping to save lives and shut down some of the biggest injustices the world drove me to put every single challenge and task at the top of my priority list to complete. I am so proud of what my team and I were able to accomplish, and I’m so excited to see how the movement grows in the future."

SDGs: A Student Voice

The following is the script of a speech presented by Sonja English (Class of 2016) to the Global Action Program assembly on October 20, 2015. Is is shared here with her permission.

"In light of the expiration of the United Nation’s Millennium Development Goals, they have released a new set of ambitions: the Sustainable Development Goals. In essence, they aspire to achieve a series of ambitious proposals by the year 2030. Here is a taste of what they have to offer: ending all poverty, everywhere, and with that an end to hunger and promotion of nutrition and sustainable agricultural practices. Another crucial goal, is to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls. Most studies strongly support the view that giving women a voice in their communities fosters a higher and more lasting level of development. Consequently, the role of women and girls needs to be emphasized ,especially in poorer regions of the world. We need more projects like The Girl Effect, as seen in 2008, which directly funded education for girls in Nigeria, Rwanda, and Ethiopia, with great success. We need to tread lightly on cultural issues like female genital mutilation and child marriage that results in girls trying to avoid the process by breast ironing. Child marriage and FGM isn’t going to go away by the developed world simply lambasting these practices. Instead, we must promote alternate ways of celebrating womanhood that still preserve indigenous values. Amhef Health Africa has founded an Alternate Rite of Passage (ARP) that replaces FGM with life skills teaching, and a ceremony. Over 9000 girls and their families have opted into ARP in Nigeria and Kenya. The UN functions on respecting the cultural traditions of communities, yet at the same time identifying where sometimes these practices do more harm than good. We must be able to consider both sides of the coin, because it’s too easy to say that “the world needs fixing”. It’s harder to suggest the means of solution that protect cultural identities and values while promoting universal human rights. The SDGs are attempting to bridge this divide and attain a more humane and respectful development for all.

Consider another issue: the part of the world that lives in darkness. We often take for granted the ability to turn on air conditioning, running water, lights. Even in Malaysia, many orang asli tribes not far from KL still do not have electricity. Liter of Light and MIT have invented a solar powered plastic water bottle light that has been introduced to rural communities. These ventures have not been government sponsored, but rather NGOs and normal citizens have worked to bring light to communities in Brazil, the Philippines, and Malaysia. This is only the beginning. Access to electricity and safe shelter go hand-in-hand. The UN’s Sustainable Development goals are all interlinked, and with the achievement of one, we get a domino effect into another. With the majority of you embarking on GAP this week, keep these goals in mind because they’re supposed to be the foundation of the trip, and we often forget this.

Malaysia with all it’s beauty invariably has its own struggles to quell. Before we embark on new journeys, we first should tackle those closest to home. Hence, Malaysia week and a Malaysian Action Program is what we should pursue. Act local, think global."

The Global Goals for Sustainable Development

On Saturday, September 25 the UN General Assembly voted to pass the Global Goals for Sustainable Development. We had touched on this earlier in the year, but now that they are in place these goals are expected to pave the way to an entirely new future. The Global Goals take effect on January 1, 2016 and will extend to 2030. By that time our littlest ones will be in their final year of college and looking at a world of opportunity with the requisite excitement and worry that entails. 

Our class of 2026 will have gone through a whole new approach to development, been taught in a completely different manner than you or I. They will have been exposed to the world in ways that are interconnected, systemic and solution-oriented, and they will have tools to make them 21st century practitioners. 

The goals highlight the need for a diverse approach to sustainability. They focus on issues of the human condition - from education, to poverty to hunger - as much as on the condition of the planet - from biodiversity on land and in the oceans. They focus on the manner by which we function as societies - as consumers, as city dwellers, and on industries and innovations. But perhaps more than anything else, they focus on the fact that everyone - literally everyone - is needed. From the youngest members to the oldest the goals offer an invitation to partner, locally and globally to move forward. Both personal citizenship and collaboration are essential.

How hopeful a situation to be in, despite school closures due to the haze. At ISKL's Sustainability & Service Learning Office we envision a beautiful and harmonious future made so by the combined efforts of our community, where care not only follows closely behind but walks along side. 

For further information on the Global Goals for Sustainable Development please feel free to visit www.globalgoals.org, watch the promotional video, "We the People for the Global Goals" below or go in depth into the goals themselves by visiting the US Sustainable Development website (here). 

The Hazy Days of Summer (errr... Dry Seasons)

Have you looked up an enjoyed that crystal clear blue sky lately?  If so, you were probably nowhere near SE Asia during the past week or two. As you know by now the haze we're all dealing with is an unhealthy side-effect of behaviors in Indonesia. Between health concerns and production methods, what gives?

A quick online search will indicate that Sumatra, where most of this haze originates, is in the tail end of a dry season. It's a season that allows for fires, often from slashing and burning, to rage increasingly out of control until the October rains appear, though there is concern that this could be delayed due to this year's expected El Nino effect. The Air Quality Index website (here) on Monday, September 14, 2015 indicated air quality levels teetering on the fence of "dangerous" (150) for the Klang Valley. We are, of course, understandably concerned for the wellbeing of our families and children.  

But for some it's harder still. One look at the bottom left corner of the image above (taken from the AQICN website  on Sep 14, 2015) will indicate an air quality reading of 796 in Pekanbaru (Riau), Indonesia!!  Is that a misprint? Perhaps, but this is also the epicenter of the at least some fires raging. At this level the numbers don't indicate a mere inconvenience, but a physical threat to life. Schools have closed, the airport shut down and people told to stay indoors. This, of course, has an obvious impact on health, but also on the economy (missed work opportunities, less tourist arrivals, etc.), and environment and social life too. 

From a sustainability standpoint this brings together numerous dimensions.  When we look at global issues like this it is helpful to view them through a "systems" perspective. How do economic, political, ecological and social dimensions interplay in the fires in Indonesia and around the region?  How can affecting one of these dimensions have a knock on effect to the others?  How can our personal and collective behaviors add to, or detract from, such large scale health risks? In what ways can we leverage change to create a better win-win situation for the future? These are necessary conversations in an increasingly interconnected world. They are conversations we're having at school. Hopefully they are also conversations you're having at home.  The conversations (and solutions) at ISKL continue long after the rains have put out the fires for this round. 

Transforming Our World Through ESD

ISKL is one of few international schools promoting Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) as a formal curricular platform. But this year, arguably more than ever, ESD is taking on a particular importance. 2015 brings with it far-reaching changes that will affect the way we, and our children, will carry out our daily lives. On September 25-27 the United Nations is expected to adopt the new Sustainable Development Goals which will pave the way for the world through 2030. It is quite appropriate that the UN names this initiative Transforming Our World. 

2015 is also the year for the COP 21 UN Climate Change talks taking place in Paris in November/December. Regardless of where we sit on the humanity-is-at-fault-for-climate-change debate, there seems to be a growing recognition at the political level that humanity needs to move decisively in unprecedented ways to ensure the health and wellbeing of the planet and all its people.  

To put this year in context, and our ESD platform with it, here are some major highlights from the past 8 months or so:

• Last November the IPCC announced that the world needs to shift almost all its energy sources by 2100 to keep temperatures at plus 2 degrees (this, of course, has huge ramifications for all the world's communities, including our own)
• Many countries have formalized their intent to cut carbon emissions in preparation for COP21
• A growing number of cities are taking steps toward sustainability
• Elon Musk (CEO of Tesla Energy) introduced a home battery. This technology is described by many as a "game changer"
• On a windy day last June Denmark became the first country to generate a surplus of wind energy, generating 140% of it's national needs. 
• Over the summer a number of Holland's citizens sued their own government for not looking after their wellbeing by not supporting sustainable practices... and won.  This is considered to be a landmark ruling that might define the way forward in many countries.

It is in this context, and with a decidedly positive outlook, that ISKL ensures that our students are becoming "socially responsible global citizens" through Education for Sustainable Development (ESD).  Be it leadership training programs, Global Issues classes, activities that develop critical thinking, constructive collaboration or any host of related skills, ISKL is working to ensure that our students are solution-oriented and forward thinking. This year's events could define a "new" direction for our shared future, but flexibility, creativity and problem solving will be necessary way after this year becomes history.

The Numbers and the Heart: 2014-15 Wind Down

Those fortunate enough to be at graduation last week will have listened to the excellent graduation speech by Michael Ortiz, a HS math teacher (who will serve as IB Coordinator next year), who focused on the "hidden curriculum" of what really matters in growing and learning. His point, regarding how much that matters is not often documented is an ever-present one. Like most things both education and life can only be 'defined' in part with numbers and data and the like. Much of it, though, lies in less-definable elements such as the heart, disposition, growth, where evidence can be much different. So too, is the case with ISKL's sustainability and service culture. 

The numbers will say this:

Indicator	Ampang	Melawati	Change from 13-14 (Total Amounts)
Water (m3) *	+ 0.5% (12,519 m3)	-37.8% (11,763 m3)	-21.7% (24,282 m3)
Electricity (kWh) *	+ 3.9 % (2,158,352 kWh)	- 8.0 % (984,657 kWh)	+1.6% (3,143,009kWh)
Paper (# of copies/prints) *	-0.6% (2,272,284)	-15.5% (689,050)	-4.5% (2,961,334)
Carbon emissions from ISKL flights (tonnes of CO2)			- 16.0% (1200 tonnes)
Recycling (kg)			+3.5% (11,027 kg)
Composting (kg - estimated)			+14.6% (17,045 kg)

They will say that, overall, ISKL has done a reasonably good job in moving toward being a more sustainable school. They will say that Melawati fared better than Ampang in that regard. They will also tell us that we recycled more, we composted more, we used less water (and fixed some leeks). But they won't talk about the heart, the disposition or the growth of our students. 

For that one needs to speak to children and ask them what they've learned. One has to see what they've accomplished. To recognize that during the course of the past two years over 100 service related initiatives have been taken on. Students have assisted with relief efforts in disaster affected areas and/or difficult political circumstances. In the process our students have learned about the challenges of being change makers. They have worked with communities in numerous less-developed areas and, in doing so, recognized how much "stuff" they have in comparison to others, but also that material things matter less in different circumstances that they might have originally thought. They have provided support in building homes for those who cannot build their own and recognized what is truly important in shelter, family and community. They have assisted with refugees and learned that the world is not always easy for people who have done no wrong. They have worked on bringing back the environment and realized how difficult it is to do so when monetary priorities imply that nature is less beneficial to an economy and, by extension, to a society. And yet, despite these seemingly massive obstacles, they still work and plant and teach and build. 

These are the "unwritten" learnings that our environmental indicator data cannot reveal and are hard to gauge. But they are there and they are necessary. For if we want out children to grow and be empowered to make the world a better place, to be the global citizens we want them to be, then all these things - the data and the learning - are important to set the course to a more sustainable present, and future. 

What a wonderful year it's been!  Our children are one year older, and wiser still. They are more capable of making change and, as the Melawati Way puts it, ".. taking care of each other and taking care of this place". Have an enjoyable summer, everyone!