SCITUATE — The Environmental Council of Rhode Island has picked a Scituate High School science program as one of four winners of the Sen. John H. Chafee Conservation Leadership Award.

The Community Energy Education Project has operated for four years under the leadership of Shannon Donovan, who teaches physical science, biology and chemistry. Her students in January sponsored a community dance on a conservation theme, contending that group attendance would lower energy demand and reduce pollution if the participants carpooled, used biodiesel or drove hybrid cars, among other arguments.

“What we do with our leisure time has an impact,” Donovan said yesterday.

Jack Schempp, vice president of the Environmental Council, said, “These awards honor the memory of the late senator and his historic efforts to protect and restore our natural environment. The awards highlight the outstanding efforts of local groups to promote community sustainability through resource conservation.”

Donovan’s brainchild is CEED, for Community Energy Education Project. Originally pitched at freshmen, it has spread throughout the school. The students do research on ways to preserve energy, then conduct an annual Energy Night in which they present their findings to the adults of the community.

Donovan said the program has become a model for other schools. She said the program began when she challenged a group of students to find ways of increasing bus ridership, thus reducing pollution emitted by cars.

She said the National Energy Education Development Project has helped out with materials.

The students “have to choose some habit or technology devoted to reducing energy waste or obtaining additional renewable energy in the world, in schools, homes and the community,” she said. “Every student does a different topic. A huge range of things are covered. They do a research paper, prepare a PowerPoint presentation to present to their class, and put their posters up for Energy Night, when members of the community come in.”

Students who joined an energy club also staff a table in the fall at the North Scituate farmers market, where they distribute information and do demonstrations, Donovan said.

Also each year, the students work with graduate students at MIT to design model cars run by nonpolluting fuel cells.

The Chafee Award is to be presented at the Environmental Council’s annual conservation leadership dinner, to be held May 9 at the Marriott Hotel, 1 Orms St., Providence.

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse will be the guest speaker. Assistant U.S. Atty. Zechariah Chafee will present the awards.

Tickets are $60, with the proceeds going to the Environmental Council’s Education Fund. Tickets may be obtained by calling (401) 621-8048. Tickets also may be obtained from the Web site environmentalcouncil@earthlink.net.

The other Chafee Awards went to the Little Compton Agricultural Conservation Trust, the Amgen Resource Conservation Program, and Fidelity Investments’ Wildlife at Work program.

The Environmental Council of Rhode Island is composed of representatives of local organizations as well as individual members. The council advocates for the local environment and lobbies the state government.

tmorgan@projo.com