Go green? The earlier the better in these crèches

Connexionfrance

Go green? The earlier the better in these crèches"


Play all audios:

Loading...

EVERY EDITION WE ASSESS AN ASPECT OF THE FRENCH ZEITGEIST. THIS MONTH: THE TREND FOR ECOLOGICALLY SOUND CHILDCARE, BY JANE HANKS Happy Babies in Caen, Calvados is one of a growing number of


crèches, which believes you can never be too young to learn to be green. It is part of the Léa et Léo group of crèches found all over France which are working towards gaining an Ecolo Crèche


Label, awarded when the crèche has shown it has taken significant steps to be more ecological in its practices over a period of several months. There are 32 full-time places at Happy


Babies, which has a staff of 11 to cater for babies of two-and-a-half months up to six years. Linda Prevel is the Director and she is convinced young children can learn very early on how to


be green: “When they wash their hands, for example, we explain they must use less water. They help us choose, and put, what goes where in each recycling bin. I also believe it is much better


for their health to be in an environment with fewer chemical products.” The crèche has made changes in several areas. “They all seem like simple things but they take time to assimilate


before they become part of daily life,” says Mrs Prevel. “For example, we turn down the heating before we leave in the evening, we turn off unnecessary lights, we use more organic and local


food in our menus, we scrutinise the labels on toys before we buy them to make sure they are eco-friendly and we make our own cleaning products. “It is also important that the whole team are


involved and we are lucky that our staff is very motivated. Their well-being is important too and we offer employees free yoga lessons.” The Ecolo Crèche label was founded in 2013 by Claire


Escriva who worked in ecotoxicology, studying the effects of chemicals and pollutants in industry and who turned her attention to crèches when she had children. There are 100 crèches with


the label and around 200 others working to earn one, out of 12,000 in France, but spokesperson for Ecolo Crèches, Antoinette Rouverand says numbers are growing: “It is moving slowly but


surely. Every day we have more and more interest in our movement. There are many advantages. In some of the crèches there has not been one case of bronchiolitis during the winter which is


rare and shows the environment is healthier. There is also less absenteeism from staff due to less illness and better morale because they are working together to make their crèche a better


place to be. “Children are able to be more creative by finding their own amusements and playing with big cardboard boxes which they love, as well as with ready-made toys. Where possible


there is a garden and maybe they can fetch eggs from a henhouse.” Any crèche can earn the label, be it municipal, private or associative. The staff must decide they want to take part, and


then choose one of eight themes to work on and prove that after a year they have made improvements: “It could be better recycling,” says Mrs Rouverand. “Or a reduction in the use of energy


and water, changes in the food provided with a higher percentage of local and organic products, a reduction in the use of cleaning products with chemicals or the introduction of different


types of activity and games, so that less plastic is used and they use home-made playdough instead of buying it. A crèche does not have to be completely “green” to earn the label as we


understand it takes time and commitment to make changes.” Very few parents have the luxury to choose a crèche and have to opt for the one where they can get a place. However, the association


has found that parents are always very happy to see that their crèche is working towards the _écolo_ label, or already has it. The association hopes that parents in crèches which do not


have the label will start to persuade staff that they should start working towards one. The label is also attracting government interest. Environment Minister Nicolas Hulot visited an Ecolo


Crèche at Aulnay-sous-Bois, Ile-de-France, in March.


Trending News

Chennai mother-daughter duo stabbed to death in apartment

The deceased are Hemalatha Shanmugam, who used to work as a stenographer at Anna University and her daughter Jayalakshmi...

The hip of hurrah : trends: cheerleading is no longer limited to cutie-pies with pompons and megaphones. It's more physically demanding and more ethni

The B-52s’ “Love Shack” is booming over the Rose Bowl, cue for UCLA’s aptly named Spirit Squad to mobilize into a Lego-l...

Govt broadens definition of startups, fixes qualification at seven years

While the overall age limit has been increased to seven years, for biotechnology firms, it has been increased to 10 year...

I was surprised: charlie hunnam on 'king arthur' casting

Actor Charlie Hunnam has said he was surprised and overjoyed when Guy Ritchie finalised him for the titular role in &quo...

Owaisi urges union government to ban upcoming movie on godse

Owaisi was referring to the movie _Gandhi Godse: Ek Yudh_ from filmmaker Rajkumar Santoshi, scheduled for release on Jan...

Latests News

Go green? The earlier the better in these crèches

EVERY EDITION WE ASSESS AN ASPECT OF THE FRENCH ZEITGEIST. THIS MONTH: THE TREND FOR ECOLOGICALLY SOUND CHILDCARE, BY JA...

Ray LaMontagne in Concert | WFAE 90.7 - Charlotte's NPR News Source

Singer, songwriter and guitarist Ray LaMontagne makes mellow, sometimes dark, poetry songs that are part folk, part soul...

Theater review : more operatic high jinks from b. J. Ward

Call it Soprano With Shtick. Or Arias With Attitude. But no matter what you duJ. Ward’s “More Stand-Up Opera,” it’s unli...

Tech giant samsung partners with cardano powered platform as market remains volatile

This week Bitcoin broke down from one of the major support levels early morning turning the sentiment in the cryptocurre...

Sc bars further felling of trees in mumbai's aarey after authorities axe over 2000

While several Bollywood stars have echoed concerns, actors Amitabh Bachchan and Akshay Kumar have come out in support of...

Top