Empowering Entrepreneurship and Environmental Stewardship: Sinsheimer Elementary School’s Partnership with Junk Girls and ECOSLO

Students at Sinsheimer Elementary School in San Luis Obispo have been honing their business skills through a partnership with a local company, Junk Girls. Through this collaboration, they created products to sell and raised $1,500 for a community project. On Arbor Day, the students and ECOSLO worked together to plant three trees at Sinsheimer Park, which was a meaningful experience for them as they saw the impact of their hard work and fundraising efforts.

Fifth-grader Genevieve Palazzo expressed her gratitude for the opportunity to work with Junk Girls and Ecoslo, saying it was heartwarming to see their dedication to helping the environment and supporting the students’ entrepreneurial aspirations. Similarly, Sophia Bastidas echoed Genevieve’s sentiments and highlighted the incredible collaboration between Junk Girls and Ecoslo and the positive impact their tree planting project would have on the community. According to Ecoslo’s program coordinator, Grant Helete, partnering with schools and organizations for projects like this is part of their Urban Tree Planning “Keys for Trees” program, which aligns with San Luis Obispo’s goal of becoming carbon-neutral by 2035. This experience has not only taught the students valuable business skills but also instilled in them a sense of environmental stewardship and community responsibility.