A record number of Victorian schools have been named as finalists in the 2025 ResourceSmart Schools Awards, Victoria’s largest sustainability celebration of students, teachers and volunteers.
This year, 31 primary and secondary schools are vying for an award across 12 categories, including Teacher of the Year and Student Action Team of the Year.
Wandin Yallock Primary School in Wandin North is one of three primary-school finalists in a new category introduced this year: the CDS Vic Excellence Award is celebrating schools that are doing great things through the Victorian Container Deposit Scheme.
From students to staff and volunteers, entire school communities are working together to protect and preserve the environment. Initiatives include setting up composting hubs and developing Bush Tucker Gardens, transforming unused spaces into thriving wetlands and establishing wildlife corridors that enhance biodiversity.
Waste reduction and recycling are front and centre, with finalists showcasing creative and impactful programs. Highlights include competitions like “Bin It to Win It” and “Sort Smart, Win Big”, along with the Recycle4Change campaign — all designed to educate and inspire sustainable habits through fun, hands-on learning.
Energy and water conservation also shine through, with schools installing solar panels, LED lighting, rainwater tanks, and even hosting an annual pedal-powered cinema — turning sustainability into a shared, community-powered effort.
This year, Sustainability Victoria is marking 16 years of the ResourceSmart Schools Awards with the theme, ‘Working Together’.
ResourceSmart Schools is a free Victorian Government program delivering sustainability education to help Victorian schools minimise waste, save energy and water, promote biodiversity and act on climate change.
Since 2008, ResourceSmart Schools has reached over 1,600 Victorian schools. Together they have planted more than 5.1 million trees, saved over $63 million through energy, waste and water savings, diverted 170,000 cubic metres of waste from landfill and avoided over 110,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions.
This year’s winners will be announced at a prestigious awards ceremony held at the MCG on 5 June.
For information about this year’s finalists, visit www.sustainability.vic.gov.au/2025-rssa-finalists.
