The Green Ribbon Schools Award by the US Department of Education goes to schools that focus on three pillars reducing environmental impact, improving health and wellness, and providing effective environmental and sustainability education.

And tonight's education matters.

We visited Cardinal Valley Elementary in Lexington.

One of this year's award recipients.

To learn more.

We have been working to receive this award for about 12 years.

Our whole school participates in recycling.

We do an annual creek cleanup.

We do lots of science based activities where they learn about how to make cleaner air and how that's important.

And then we also have a composting program.

It does take a little bit of education.

In the beginning of the year.

We go over what goes in the compost, what goes in the recycling, what doesn't go in the recycling.

I do feel like they have really embraced it.

You know, if they see you putting something in the garbage that should be in recycling, then they ask, Why are you doing it?

That should be in the recycling.

A lot of them are going home and teaching their parents about sustainability and recycling and why it's important.

They are demanding that their parents generation, the grandparents generation, recognize and acknowledge the importance of climate change, not just in our coastal areas or arid areas or Arctic areas, but right here in Lexington, Kentucky.

Where A and the teachers here at Cardinal Valley are doing are giving kids a connection to the natural world that builds a relationship, but also builds an excitement to think about like how are they helping to not only preserve but to conserve and to help our world thrive in our day and age.

We have a lot of students and young people that have what is called eco anxiety because of what they see in the world and where things are going.

The data unequivocally shows that climate change is and will impact their futures unlike any generation before them.

They must be given conduits.

They must be empowered to improve their futures.

Hopefully we can send a whole generation out into the world that takes those things more seriously so that we preserve the Earth for all of us.

The thrill that the kids get out of like being environmental and, like, helping.

And like when they come in sometimes really, I compost it, seeing their pride and their excitement in their faces.

That's what makes me come here every day.

In education, there are a lot of metrics to decide whether a school is, quote, good or not.

And most of those all fall under test scores.

And we also know that schools are good for a lot of other reasons.

Recognizing schools on this platform around what they're doing on the environment and how they're connecting their building and their facility and the work as teachers is another really great way to say this is a really good school and they're doing excellent work.

I have seen the work that Ms.. Boyle and the students have done and really the entire staff.

And to finally be recognized for that with an award as prestigious as this one is, was was really satisfying for all of us.

Congrats to them.

Mary G. Hogsett Primary School and Danville also earned the award this year.

The two Kentucky schools are among 26 schools, 11 districts and four post-secondary institutions to receive the designation this year.