MSU SWAPS Program

282 bottles eliminated already!

The SWAPS team stopped by the Pascagoula Civic Center to see a water refill station they donated last month. Access to refill stations helps promote sustainable choices like using refillable water bottles. This fountain has already eliminated 282 plastic water bottles!

👋Homeschoolers!!! This is for you!👋

Starting next Friday we will be teaching hands-on lessons about sustainable practices!

Make sure to tag or share this post so we can get the word out!

Call to register!

Homeschoolers,

Please don't forget about our Friday, Nov.. 3rd SWAPS workshop and our Friday, Nov.10th workshop!

These classes are great fun and offer so much regarding sustainability.

Please call to register: 601-799-2311

We had a great time yesterday teaching DIY alternatives to plastic to a great group of students at Ocean Springs High School!

Join us!! Reserve a spot by giving them a call!

Another great MSU Extension program!

Do you keep thinking you should start a compost pile, but not sure where to start? Come join us!

St. Martin students closed out their school year with a trip to the beach! With some SWAPS participants in attendance we hosted several activities including kayaking, seining, litter surveying, and a nurdle patrol!

Onto summer session activities ☀️

This semester has wrapped up and we’ve learned so much from being with students in the classroom! Our online portion (via CANVAS) also has provided participants with richer background information on the modules, deeper discussion on current events, and more.

Look out for SWAPS to make a return to the classroom in the Fall—and a few outreach events this Summer along the way!

Students activated, mixed, and molded mycelium into different shapes, including these plant pots!

After the mycelium finished curing students decorated and planted in their projects! Mycelium is an up and coming alternative to plastic and can be used in place of many different textiles 🍄

Mrs. McKenna’s class took part in a virtual reality litter cleanup today! This application was developed by partners at the MSU Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering to connect people from all backgrounds to current marine debris issues.

Read more on this app and its related research by reading “Marine debris awareness improvement using immersive virtual reality” in the Marine Pollution Bulletin journal.

The final module is one near and dear to our hearts—getting active in litter reduction programs!

Students will spend a short time in the classroom leaning about global, national, and local efforts in data collection, litter prevention, removal, and the importance of education and outreach. The lab portion will immerse students in a virtual reality marine debris program and get them involved in a (real life) cleanup on campus.

We hope this first semester of SWAPS has been as successful as it feels ♻️

The hands-on portion of this module included a little DIY!

Students made their own beeswax wraps, lotion bars, and mycelium flower pots to help reduce their single-use plastic efforts—and have a little fun in the lab.

Katie Fetzer, Education Coordinator for Pascagoula River Audobon Center, composted 7.39 lbs of food waste from their annual “Birds of a Feather” fundraising event!

They borrowed our static pile to compost their scraps until we can assist in building one onsite at their offices in Moss Point. We love to see S.W.A.P.S. “swaps” in action!