Every spring, as the snow melts and nature comes to life, many New Brunswick schools answer the call of renewal… with litter pickers and garbage bags in hand! Many schools organized cleanup days that strengthened students’ sense of environmental responsibility, supported by Encorp Atlantic’s Community Cleanup Grant.
Elementary, middle, and high schools all benefited from this support this year, hosting activities that were educational, engaging, and rooted in their communities.
Learning Outdoors and Together
By taking part in these cleanup days, students had the chance to step outside the classroom walls and learn in new ways. They learned to identify waste, better understand the impact of local pollution, and most importantly, work as a team to make a real difference in their community.
Some groups explored nearby trails, others cleaned parks, schoolyards, or roadside ditches in their neighbourhoods. Everywhere, the same commitment, the same determination to do good, and plenty of pride in helping create a cleaner environment for all.
Teachers, support staff, parents, and sometimes even municipal partners joined in. This mobilization created meaningful moments filled with learning, teamwork, and lasting memories.
One Grant, Big Impacts
With the help of Encorp’s grant, schools were able to purchase needed supplies (gloves, bags, litter-picking tools, garbage bins), ensure student safety during outings, and even provide small snacks to keep spirits high. Some schools also used the activity as an opportunity to reflect on their own waste management, suggest lasting improvements, or raise awareness about the importance of recycling.
The 2025 school recipients were:
- Back Bay Elementary School (Back Bay)
- Bath Community School (Bath)
- Bathurst High School (Bathurst)
- Bayside Middle School (Saint John)
- Belleisle Elementary School (Springfield)
- Belleisle Regional High School (Springfield)
- Campobello Island Consolidated School (Campobello Island)
- Centennial School (Saint John)
- Centre Scolaire Samuel de Champlain (Saint John)
- Donald Fraser Memorial School (Plaster Rock)
- DRHS International Students (Dalhousie)
- École Camille-Vautour (Sainte-Antoine)
- École Carrefour de l’Acadie (Dieppe)
- École Dr Marguerite-Michaud (Bouctouche)
- École les Éclaireurs (Fredericton)
- École Père-Edgar-T.-LeBlanc (Grand-Barachois)
- École Sainte-Anne (Fredericton)
- Fundy Middle and High School (St. George)
- Harry Miller Middle School (Rothesay)
- Harvey Elementary School (Harvey Station)
- Millidgeville North School (Saint John)
- Nackawic Elementary School (Nackawic)
- Nashwaaksis Middle School (Fredericton)
- River Valley Middle School (Grand Bay-Westfield)
- Rothesay High School (Rothesay)
- Saint John High School (Saint John)
- Simonds High School (Saint John)
- St. Malachy’s Memorial High School (Saint John)
- Sunbury West School (Fredericton Junction)
- Sussex Corner Elementary School (Sussex Corner)
All of these schools took advantage of the opportunity to create initiatives tailored to their reality, environment, and community. The results? Hundreds of bags of litter collected, beverage containers returned for recycling, and most importantly, a generation of youth who feel empowered to protect the planet.
Will Your School Take Part in 2026?
The success of these cleanup events once again shows that environmental education benefits from being hands-on. By giving young people the chance to make a difference, we help shape citizens who are engaged and aware of their power to act.
The Community Cleanup Grant will be back in 2026! Whether you want to clean up your schoolyard, your neighbourhood, or another area in your community, this support can give you the boost you need to make it happen.
To be notified when the next application period opens, stay connected with our website and follow us on Facebook and Instagram.
Start thinking today about your own school cleanup project!
