Our sustainable initiatives

At Collège du Léman, we strive every day to be eco-responsible. All the members of the CDL community are encouraged to make our school more sustainable.

Our mission is to "shape generations that harness differences, changing the world for the better". Changing the world for the better includes putting the environment at the heart of our educational efforts.

While our Eco-Committee (group of staff members) is leading significant sustainable actions for the school, for instance, replacing light bulbs with LEDs to reduce energy consumption on our campus, we’d like to focus on student-led initiatives.

Please meet the Student Environmental Association

(Header photo) Under the supervision of Delphine Ross, our Sustainability Project Leader, the Environmental Association (EA) is a group of students working to improve eco-responsibility at our school. Below, are a few of the initiatives they have worked on.

They developed the Eco-Ambassador programme, and now train a group of Eco-Ambassadors who can then run training courses for students themselves, spreading eco-friendly best practices on our campus.

Members of the Environmental Association are advocates for animal welfare. They also set up a volunteer programme with Geneva's BioParc, are taking part in manual work to improve the animals' habitat, volunteered at the BioParc Fete and provided visitors with extensive information on rare species.

NEW! Our students awarded with the Green Cord

For the first time at our school's graduation ceremony, in June 2023, we awarded the Green Cord to seven students, for their leadership role in the CDL Environmental Association.

Also for the first time, our Senior students were invited to leave their unwanted gowns for recycling, avoiding single-use. This led to an encouraging 40% of recycled gowns. We hope to do even better next year.

Reduce, reuse, and recycle with Sustainable Fashion

In an effort to raise awareness for the fast-fashion industry and promote eco-friendly alternatives, the Environmental Association organised a Sustainable Fashion Show last year. The show featured inspiring thrifted and upcycled pieces made from recycled and second-hand items, including a revamped men's suit, a geometric upcycled dress, a flowery dress made from curtains, and even tie-dyed clothing.

This initiative serves as a shining example of how we can all contribute to a healthier, more sustainable planet. Thanks to Coucoudre, they are now giving us all an opportunity to do so.

NEW! With Coucoudre, let's reduce the impact of fast-fashion

We are happy to announce that we are now partnering with Coucoudre, a local social impact charity working with local refugees to repair textiles and create sewn products from recycled fabrics.

Many of our Boarding students take part in the Lake Geneva clean-up operation twice a year.

We have a beautiful lake on our doorstep, and the reason it stays in a pristine condition is that twice a year, neighbours get together to help take care of it. In this big operation, some of our students are involved in setting up the process, while others are helping to pick up rubbish. We are very proud of this group and grateful to them for their strong values and the example they set for others. 950kg of waste were collected during this one action.

Our teachers empowered to inspire our students change-makers with the Climat Fresque

Some of our teachers have completed the training for "La Fresque du Climat" (the Climate Fresk) and were able to facilitate the first "Fresk" workshops among our students.
The Climate Fresk has become the benchmark tool enabling individuals, organisations and businesses to take up the challenge of the climate emergency.
It is with great pride that we implement this amazing collaborative educational tool in our school. We will keep training our teachers, and workshops will take place for our Secondary students, thus raising climate change awareness among our community.

Reducing single-use recipients at our Panthers' Cafeteria

NEW this school year: we now all need to bring our own containers and cups with lids to the Panthers' Cafeteria. Of course, if you haven't brought one, you can borrow the reusable ones from the cafeteria - in partnership with Re-Circle. When you bring your clean container back, you will receive your deposit back.

"Since we implemented our 'zero waste' approach in August, we have already contributed to saving 400 salad containers and we hope to save 9'000 cups during the school year." Delphine Ross

Students who bring their own lunch are encouraged to strive for a zero-waste picnic. Similarly, we emphasize the importance of participants at all our campus events bringing their own picnic ware to reduce single-use item waste.

More than ever, we are committed to a greener, more sustainable world.