At the Deutsche Schule Durban, we understand that we are a relatively privileged school, and we believe that it is our duty to give back to our surrounding communities through a variety of different projects. This commitment is woven into the fabric of our school life, empowering our learners to become compassionate and engaged global citizens.
A heartwarming example of student engagement is our "Bread Buddies" programme. Each week, a different class from Grade 1 to Grade 7 takes a turn providing the simple ingredients – sliced bread, margarine, peanut butter, or fruit jam. These ingredients are then donated to a local pre-school that supports children from poverty-stricken and child-headed households, offering a tangible act of kindness and nourishment.
No Shoe Day
Children who wish to donate a pair of good-condition shoes they have outgrown or no longer need can come to school barefoot for the day, bringing their shoes for donation to those less fortunate. This event is part of a variety of charitable drives throughout the year, encouraging students to support their community in different ways.
The LEARN Project (Let’s Educate A Rainbow Nation)
Deutsche Schule Durban proudly supports The Learn Project, a non-profit trust dedicated to improving literacy in under-resourced South African schools. They equip these schools with reading books and help establish sustainable libraries and classroom book corners. Our learners and their families regularly donate good-condition, pre-loved children’s books, which are collected by The LEARN Project.
Coastal Clean-ups
Living in beautiful KwaZulu-Natal, we understand the importance of preserving our marine environment. The Deutsche Schule Durban community, including students, staff, and families, actively supports and participates in various beach clean-up initiatives throughout the year. These often serve as educational class outings during the week or as larger community gatherings at designated beaches on weekends, fostering a hands-on appreciation for environmental care.
Our Eco-Schools Platinum Journey
The DSD is a very proud Eco-School and has been for the past 7 years, achieving the Platinum 3 Level in 2021. To uphold this status, as well as to upgrade it every year, the DSD has put initiatives in place, to make a positive impact on our environment. Some of these initiatives include:
Recycling all of our Waste
Our school has recycled its waste for many years. The allocated bins urge students and staff to separate their waste into paper, plastic, tin and other. Glass and paper is collected by “The Glass Recycling Company” and “MPact” respectively, while the rest is collected by the municipality. In 2019 the DSD collected 13 498kg of glass. These efforts also include the collection of plastic bread tags, plastic bottle caps and batteries and printer cartridges, which are collected and distributed to a variety of initiatives that either recycle them or dispose of them ethically.
67 Minutes for Mandela
Every year, for Mandela Day, our school takes 67 Minutes of their time to do something for the environment. These activities included things such as making sandwiches for an underprivileged primary school, clearing weeds and alien plants from the school property and cleaning up litter in the school area.
Planting Indigenous Gardens
We have planted a few indigenous gardens throughout the school property in an effort to eradicate alien plants entirely.
For a full overview of our initiatives, have a look at our 2024 DSD Eco-Schools Report.
Our vision is to provide a holistic education of a high standard in both German and English for all children of our society, in a Christian context, regardless of background, culture and religion, which will prepare them for a globalised world.
