D65 Sustainability Update: June 26

This pilot rolling out in 26-27SY will teach 200 District 65 5th grade students how to safely and confidently interact with the road network and use sustainable, active transportation modes as part of their daily life. This weeklong unit will include classroom, parking lot, and on-road learning and will take place during a series of in-school physical education classes during the school day.

To ensure the project benefits all participating students, the program will have an access

component to support bicycle ownership for students whose families face financial barriers. Moreover, the instructional bicycle fleet that will be used for the on-bicycle component of the training will include adaptive bicycles for students who require them.

This pilot program will build a foundation for City- and School District 65-wide programming that reaches students at all district campuses and the Evanston community’s non-D65 elementary schools. Moreover, the fleet will be used for afterschool and summer programming at Evanston parks and community centers.

Why: Together, we’re aiming to raise $100,000 to fund:

• Expanded bike parking across all D65 middle schools
• A shared mobile ReGeneration Station (bike-powered generators that store electricity in a battery based “Energy Bank” for hands-on learning)

When & what: September 20, 2026, for the Northshore Century bike ride

• Ride with us on a special 12-mile family route created just for D65, or choose from other distance options ranging from 25 - 100 miles
• Fundraise through our personal fundraising portal to support these school-based sustainability projects
• Not riding? Join as a virtual rider and still make an impact!

Where: All routes begin and end at Gilson Park in Wilmette

In 2026, our D65 schools mobilized to gather leftover school supplies that would typically go to the landfill from May 27 to June 5. We encouraged sharing and reuse within our schools and D65 Families and recovered $750 of school supplies to offset purchasing new supplies!

6 Participating Schools in 2026: Dawes, Dewey, JEH ECC, Oakton, Orrington, Walker

Remaining items were donated to the D65 Family Wellness Program, Art Makers Outpost & Hive, and SCARCE. A big thank you to all who participated in our D65 End of School Clean Out and giving back to our schools, families and community. Thanks to you as our teachers, staff, caregivers and volunteers who helped make this year's clean out a success!

Note: Bessie Rhodes, Kingsley and Willard are participating in a separate, holistic process as part of our school transition work with a priority on reuse, donation and recycling as much as possible we strive to reduce waste to landfill.

We're excited to share that District 65 is featured in a USGBC's new publication, Psychology of Behavior Change for Zero Waste Schools, published in May 2026. Our D65 sustainability and nutrition services team partnered with the US Center for Green Schools to share our experiences and insights on our lunchroom composting & recycling program.

USGBC is hoping that many districts will be inspired by and get helpful insights from our program and super useful resources!

Please update your school's contact information for the 26-27 school year, including:

• Climate Action Team Chair(s)
• School Garden Team Chair(s)
• Climate Club
• School PTA and Newsletter emails

The City of Evanston will host its annual "Evanston Recycles" event on Saturday, June 27, from 9 a.m. to noon, at Evanston Township High School, 1600 Dodge Ave.

Each year, this free “drive-up, drop-off” event offers residents the opportunity to recycle and donate a variety of items, as well as securely shred documents. This year, the City will be collecting electronic waste, documents for shredding, and unused prescription medication and expired over-the-counter drugs.

New in 2026!

Residents from Climate Action Evanston will be volunteering onsite, taking select additional materials to help reuse and recycle items. Please ensure that when transporting these items to the event, they are accessible and separated for easy collection and sorting by volunteers. Accepted items include:

• Bicycles, bike parts, and accessories
• Books, CDs, and DVDs
• Tools (hand or power) in good working condition
• Usable art and office supplies (markers, paint, paper, etc.)
• Lego bricks
• Tennis balls

Directions for Drivers, Cyclists & Pedestrians

Community members participating in the event by car should enter the drop-off line on Church Street west of Dodge Avenue (view map below). Participants are asked to follow the signs to the drop-off area and remain in their cars. Participants are asked not to line up before 8 a.m.

Those who are walking or cycling to the event to drop off their items should proceed directly to the areas marked with an "X" on the map, rather than following the green route designated for drivers. This will allow pedestrians to navigate the event safely and avoid walking through vehicle traffic.

Church Street will be closed to through traffic between McCormick Boulevard and Dodge Avenue during the event. Access will be limited to event-related vehicles only. Attendees should enter from McCormick Boulevard via Church Street, and all exiting traffic will be directed back toward McCormick Boulevard at the end of the event.

Electronics Recycling

The following electronic materials will be accepted:

• Cell phones
• Computers (PCs and laptops)
• Computer monitors
• DVR/Cable boxes
• DVD and VHS players
• Fax machines
• Mice and keyboards
• MP3 players and PDAs
• Printers and scanners
• TVs
• Video game consoles

Document Shredding and Recycling

Residents can bring up to five banker’s boxes of paper documents to be shredded on-site. Documents should be placed in a box or brown paper bag, and large metal clips and binders should be removed ahead of time. Staples and paper clips are acceptable. Document shredding is not available for businesses.

Medications Disposal

Residentially generated, unused prescription medication and expired over-the-counter drugs will be accepted for disposal. Medications considered to be controlled substances will also be accepted. Participants are asked to follow these guidelines for medication disposal:

• Medicines must be in labeled containers; no loose pills
• No needles or syringes (used or new)
• Multiple medicine bottles should be transported in a clear, re-sealable storage bag

Evanston Recycles is supported by the Solid Waste Agency of Northern Cook County (SWANCC). Electronics recycling and document destruction are open to residents of all Solid Waste Agency of Northern Cook County (SWANCC) communities.

For more information, please call or text 847-448-4311. For convenience, residents in Evanston may simply dial 3-1-1.

The Evanston Community Fridges are looking for community members to help shop for, clean, and deliver food for the three community fridges in Evanston. Evanston’s three community fridges provide free food and toiletries to any community member, anytime. To read about the donation guidelines and fridge locations, please visit https://www.evanstoncommunityfridges.com. To learn how to get more involved, please email evanstoncommunityfridge@gmail.com.

ESCCA, the Evanston School Children’s Clothing Association, is hard at work fulfilling its historic mission - to make sure no Evanston child misses school for lack of warm clothing or shoes. ESCCA opened its doors to District 65 children just before the start of the school year so they could visit our store and choose warm clothing, coats, shoes, boots, socks, undergarments, and more. ESCCA has received over 150 referrals so far this school year.

There are many ways to get involved with ESCCA:

• Consider purchasing something from our Amazon Wishlist which we continue to update with the items we need most. Click HERE!

• Contribute financially to ESCCA to help us purchase clothing for the shop. Click HERE!

• Drop off warm clothing in The Clothing Bin - located at 1500 McDaniel Drive (behind the D65 Building)

• Volunteer with ESCCA!

• SWANCC Waste Reduction and Litter Clean Up Grants - open year-round

• D65 Sustainability Website
• D65 Sustainability Plan (adopted April 2025)
• D65 Sustainability Goals Annual Progress Report
• D65 Sustainability Data Dashboard
• D65 Sustainability and Garden Resources Library
• D65 Climate Action & Garden Community Contact List
• D65 Sustainability Newsletter Archive