March 2020. UK students faced the fact that lockdown was the longest period of time spent without school since they started primary. The Wimbledon High School Eco-Committee was just gearing up to kick-start new initiatives when lockdown rules came crashing in. But this South-West London school was determined to keep the importance of environmental consciousness on the school’s agenda, even in a pandemic. 

The WHS Eco-Committee was formed in the autumn term of 2019. The separate sub-committees harnessed student’s specific environmental passions and gave them the opportunity to discuss potential plans for the school. Students from different years were not only able to discuss important issues with like-minded people but feel empowered to mold the community around them. This was the essence of what the Youth Climate Movement, rising in popularity and support, was trying to convey. 

When lockdown came around in March, the Eco-Committee decided to resume meetings as normal, except virtually. They revised their action plan and adapted to the changes by using all that Microsoft Teams had to offer. They strengthened school-wide communication efforts, setting up pages on the school website as well as notifying students of what they could do from home to maintain enviornmental awareness.

However, before lockdown, one of the members of the Biodiversity sub-committee was hatching a plan to establish a WHS Gardening Club. Of course this would never work in the way she expected but nevertheless, a Gardening Club Microsoft Teams Group was formed and over the spring and summer term, students and staff alike shared pictures of what they had been getting up to in their gardens at home. The Year 10 student, Poorna Baikady, who runs Gardening Club said she wanted to  adapt her plans “taking advantage of how so many people were finding gardening to be a therapeutic hobby in lockdown times”. 

Now schools are once again relatively normal, Gardening Club had its first outdoor session where students learnt how to prune a rose bush. Even though most sessions were still held through a video call, students loved how ecological initiatives, like Gardening Club, were "a relaxing break from usual lessons" as well as incredibly informative. 

Although students are still grappling with the ever changing global climate, the Eco-Committee were able to keep students grounded, reminding them to make sure that even in a global pandemic issues like climate change are no less important than they were some months ago.