Making an Impact through Film: Elise Dadourian ’16 Educates on Sustainability
Eighth grade science teacher Caroline Feldman ’05 lit up when she heard that her former student, Elise Dadourian ’16, had made a documentary about food waste for her senior year thesis at Brown. The film would fit perfectly into Feldman’s unit on food and sustainability, so she quickly created a lesson plan to incorporate her former student’s work into her science unit.
Dadourian’s documentary, The Global Waste Crisis and The Danish Solution, focuses on food-waste reduction in Denmark, a global leader in food sustainability. Dadourian first became interested in the relationship between food and the environment in a U.S. history course while she was still a student at Shipley. It was Copenhagen’s reputation as one of the most sustainable cities in the world that initially attracted Dadourian to study abroad there, and a new course in food sustainability being offered in the Danish capital would tie in perfectly with her senior thesis.
“In the Autumn of 2018, I began planning my senior thesis,” wrote Dadourian, an environmental studies major. “A documentary seemed the natural way to combine environmental science and film, my two fields of study. I chose to focus on food waste in particular because it seemed like something easy to fix. When it comes to combating the climate crisis and decreasing carbon footprints, food waste is the “low-hanging fruit.”Thwarting its effects requires no new technology or political revolution; it merely requires a change in the attitudes and behaviors of individuals.”
Dadourian’s film was the perfect addition to Feldman’s unit on Food & Sustainability, which students completed with a research paper on food security problems and solutions in U.S. cities, and a virtual visit from Dadourian. The alumna was able to share her passion for the environment and film-making with Shipley’s eighth graders, inspiring the next generation of Shipley Changemakers.
Watch some clips from Elise Dadourian's visit with Middle School science students.
Dadourian talks about making the documentary.
The problem of food waste and employing Danish solutions in the United States.
The impact of Covid-19 on food waste and sustainability.
Originally published in the May 2022 issue of the Upper School student newspaper, The Beacon, this article shares insights from All School President Griffin Chulik ’22 about his student government experience and some final thoughts as he departs from the Shipley community and prepares to head off to college in the fall.
Acorns to Oaks has been a tradition the Shipley community has celebrated for decades. Bringing together not only the oldest and youngest students in the School, but also their families and the community as a whole. After COVID forced disruptions in the traditional celebrations, families of Oaks & Acorns were invited onto campus to participate in the first Acorn & Oak festivities of the 2021-2022 school year.
In this October 2021 article from The Beacon student newspaper, Asher Leavy explores recent updates and challenges faced by Shipley's dining services in keeping up with sustainability efforts, including expanded vegan and vegetarian offerings.
After 726 days, Super Saturday, the opening community event of the school year, made its triumphant return. Like the leaves changing color and decorative pumpkins, some things are simply an integral part of fall. Super Saturday is one of those things! After being cancelled in 2020 due to the pandemic, Shipley’s annual event was back and better than ever.
Waste sorting benefits the environment and saves money. Taking a few extra minutes at lunch to decide whether something goes in the compost, trash, or recycling bin can significantly reduce the amount of waste Shipley produces. By properly sorting waste, we can meet our sustainability goals both as a country and a school. Here at Shipley, you can easily do your part to help reach a clean, green future.
The Shipley School is a private, coeducational day school for pre-kindergarten through 12th grade students, located in Bryn Mawr, PA. Through our commitment to educational excellence, we develop within each student a love of learning and a desire for compassionate participation in the world.