Question 1

Is it mainly designed for adults or is it appropriate for high school?

Accepted Answer

Ecochallenge at The Tech is definitely appropriate for high school students. In fact, many of the challenges are appropriate for middle school students.

Question 2

What is the optimal or maximum size for teams?

Accepted Answer

We find the optimal team size to be 4 or 5 — this is most fun for the captains. If you need a larger group or an entire classroom to be a team, that works too.

Question 3

Would you recommend several small teams compete within a single period or should each period be one team?

Accepted Answer

Ecochallenge is very flexible and can handle several small teams within a period. How you wish to organize your group or classroom is up to you.

Question 4

Will my students’/team members’ privacy be protected enough if they enter this challenge?

Accepted Answer

The best way to protect student privacy is for the instructor to be team captain, not add individual names to the roster, and just regularly enter the class’ completed actions on their own. Ecochallenge communicates with the captain via email. Rest assured that Ecochallenge does not share your email with any third parties, and once the challenge is complete you will not receive any more emails.
 
Please be aware that team members are visible to other Ecochallenge teams, but emails are NOT viewable. For complete anonymity team members can use aliases.
 
According to Ecochallenge: Legally anyone over 14 can have a profile on our site, however, if the teacher wants to represent the class they can do that.

Question 5

Should students captain their own teams or should I captain all the teams?

Accepted Answer

We think it is a valuable experience for students to captain their own teams. That being said, you know your class best and the decision is up to you. 
 
Please note that while you can create many teams and assign captains, the instructor can only join one team.

Question 6

How many maximum teams would I be able to captain?

Accepted Answer

You can captain as many teams as needed, but please note that you can only join one team.

Question 7

Could teams compete against each other if I was the captain of every team?

Accepted Answer

Yes! Each team should have its own name.

Question 8

What are some examples of the challenges?

Accepted Answer

• Challenging oneself to eat meatless meals
• Committing to using a reusable water bottles 
• Watching videos on food sovereignty
• Planting a garden
• Reducing shower times
And so many more!