1. Lungtenphu Lower Secondary School held a session to remind teachers and students about the Design for Change (DFC) process and their roles in guiding students through each stage. 2. Students identified issues they wanted to address, such as waterborne diseases and preserving the national language, but ultimately decided to focus on combating plastic and plastic products. 3. The school identified measures to reduce plastic use, including banning plastic food wrappers, bottles, and bags in school; fining students for plastic possessions; and turning plastic waste into art.

1. Lungtenphu Lower Secondary School
Lungtenphu
Thimphu
hough the concept of Design for change was not new to the teachers and students of the
school, I as the DFC coordinator held a reminding session on 11th
May, 2013. The
teachers were briefed and familiarized on the processes of DFC and their role in guiding
the children through each stage of the DFC process. We scrutinized each slide of the presentation
to ensure that the whole process and story comes out well.
On 13th
May, 2013, the class teacher sacrificed their precious teaching time and took their
respective class through the FEEL, IMAGINE and DO stage. They took note of the changes the
children wanted to bring in the society and what measures they could take in order to combat the
situation.
Each class teacher handed over their children’s ideas to the
DFC coordinator. The list was endless. Their FEEL stage
brought varying ideas ranging fromdiminutive issues like
need for combating water borne diseases to great ideas like
preserving our national language. However, after going
through the democratic process of voting, the majority of
them unanimously decided to combat plastic and plastic
products.
In order to combat the environmental threat posed by plastic
and plastic products, we then needed to identify the means
and measure that we could employ to bring the desired
change. Following were the means and strategies they identified.
1. Students and teachers are not allowed to eat junk food in the school premise, or any food
items that come in plastic wrappers.
2. Students and the teachers will use proper water bottles instead of PET and mineral water
bottles.
3. The DFC committee will ensure that the students do not use plastic bags to carry
necessary things.
T
DESIGN FOR CHANGE
‘Adieu Plastics and thy Products…Sayonara!’

2. 4. Teachers and all students are also not allowed to use plastic related products in the school
campus during the academic time.
5. The Ball point pen free policy will be reintroduced as a part of the Zero Plastic Policy.
6. In case a student is found possessing the prohibited items, the item will be seized and the
perpetrator will be fined a sum of nu. 5/- (First instance), nu. 20/- (Second instance) and
nu 50/- (Third instance) and the child will be held in disciplinary ground.
7. The Collection of the amount will be done by the Class teachers and handed over, later,
to the DFC coordinator, who in turn will keep a record as DFC fund for the year. The
DFC coordinator will issue money receipts to the class teachers upon the receipt of the
fine money.
8. The plastic wastes found in the school premise will be collected and handed over to the
nature club and Arts club for turning them into art pieces.
9. The sale of any items that come in plastic wrappers is strictly prohibited.
10. Distribution of sweets will not be allowed during birthday celebrations in order to reduce
the use of plastic. Students will preferably light butter lamp or contribute a flower pot to
their class.
11. The school will provide squash (orange juice) to students during different celebrations.
Gifts to be wrapped in paper.
12. The DFC core members will conduct surprise checking during the school hour to ensure
that the aforementioned pledges are respected at all
times.
The previous year’s policy of Ballpoint Free School was
reinstated. Ball point pens too are plastic products. The
bodies of the pen, its cap, refill, part of the tip, push
button, etc are made of plastic, not to mention the plastic
wrapper it comes in. Hence, the children stated that the
revival of this Ballpoint Free policy must be revived. We
were only too glad to consent to it.
The school has also filed a petition to the Thromdey Education Officer, Thimphu City
Corporation seeking approval to make presentations to the other Thromdey Schools on the
Ballpoint Pen Free School as a part of the sharing process. As of now, we are waiting for a
response from the Thromdey Education Office.
Thanking you,
(RinchenPhuntsho)