For one group of Tucker staffers, City Hall isn’t just a place to work; it’s an avenue for improving the way we live and for impacting future generations.
Meet the City Hall “Green Team”, four members of Tucker’s City staff who are taking the initiative to make government buildings in the City more sustainable. The idea was the brainchild of the City’s Community Development staff, who saw several easy steps they could take to make the workplace more environmentally friendly.
“If people are heading home for the day, or even if they have an hourlong meeting, we’re encouraging them to turn their lights off,” City Planner Tim Lampkin explains. “Our staff members all have reusable coffee cups and water bottles to cut down on waste. These are simple steps that our staff has been quick to adopt.”
City Planner Rosie Walk is new to the Tucker staff, but was eager to join the Green Team. She says her interest in sustainable living started in elementary school.
“I was in the fifth grade at Camp Creek Elementary School,” Walk recalls. “For some reason our school decided to start using Styrofoam trays in the cafeteria. We still had the old reusable plastic trays just sitting there in good shape, but they weren’t getting used. I just thought that it was really wasteful.
“So my friend Megan and I started a petition and got the entire fifth grade to sign it. The school ended up changing back to the plastic trays.”
The Parks and Recreation Department is represented in the effort by Joe Stewart, a Tucker native. Stewart says that, as someone who works in the recreation field, preserving the outdoors is crucial.
“I love working and playing outside,” he says. “The smell of the fresh air, the beauty of our Tucker parks…I grew up playing in these parks and these are things that, as City staff, we can take steps to help keep intact.”
Stewart isn’t the only one on the Green Team with deep ties to the City. Olivia Wilson graduated from Tucker High School in 2005 and has spent time volunteering at community cleanups like Rivers Alive.
“Being green matters to me as a citizen of Tucker,” says Wilson, the Community Development Administrative Assistant. “I’m excited to see what changes and what programs we can implement to make our city more environmentally friendly.”
“We just want to lead by example,” Lampkin says. “If enough people follow that example, maybe we can make a small difference in our community.”
In this case, a small difference could create a ripple effect in Tucker for generations to come.
How You Can Make a More Sustainable Home
Our Green Team is implementing several simple steps around City Hall that you can do in your own home. They’re easy, they’re good for the environment and they might just save you some money!
- Drink out of reusable water bottles/cups
- Take a lunchbox with reusable silverware and containers each day
- Turn out lights when you leave a room
- Set your thermostat to 68 degrees in the winter and 78 degrees in the summer
- Consider composting your food scraps
- Install plants in your yard that attract pollinators
