Determined students from schools across the kingdom came together for a summit to voice their concerns about the ecosystem, listen to environmental experts and share their ideas about achieving sustainability to help make a difference within their institutions and the country.
The knowledge-sharing event, entitled Bahrain International Schools Eco Summit 2023 ‘Bahrain - Hear our Voice’, was hosted by St Christopher’s School Bahrain at Bahrain Polytechnic, in Isa Town, with the support of the Supreme Council for Environment (SCE) and Upcycle Bahrain.
It was conceptualised by Mark Jones, assistant head teacher at St Christopher’s Primary School, and colleague Orla Reilly, sustainability leader and geography teacher at the senior school. Both of them also administer the environmental clubs at their schools.
“There is a huge amount of great sustainable practice taking place in schools and organisations around Bahrain, but this is not always shared sufficiently,” said Mr Jones.
“The aim is to share good practice amongst schools, whilst also showcasing Bahraini organisations and their sustainability programmes.
“We brought everyone together to listen to each other, share wonderful ideas and just focus on what is important – the environment and sustainability.”
Sustainable
The event was also co-hosted by Sara Al Banna, founder of Upcycled which is made up of nine Bahrain Polytechnic students involved in turning plastic water bottles into sustainable fabrics.
Around 300 students from 16 schools, aged between 10 and 16, took part in the green gathering. Inspirational speakers voiced action ideas and workshops were staged by eco organisations including the SCE, Reef Arabia, Nidukki, Learn to Grow, and Dr Earth.
Students from five schools – Ibn Khuldoon School, St Christopher’s, Al Wisam School, Bahrain Bayan School and the British School of Bahrain (BSB) – also presented their eco school projects to their peers.
The Bahrain Bayan School team, made up of Bahrainis, Sudanese, Saudi Arabian and Palestinian students, shared their award-winning EcoLab 360 initiative which took first place in the UAE’s prestigious Shaikh Zayed Future Energy Prize in 2018.
The Eco Booster team consisted of Zain Al Rayes, 17, Hassan Khoja, 17, Duaij Al Khalifa, 17, Rayan Dashti, 16, Noora Yousif, 16, Ayah Al Saad, 16, Budoor Ali, 16, Lama Al Maraj, 16 and Celine Jhattas, 17.
Each student played a role in the presentation from sharing the initial stages of the lab that focus on energy, water and waste to the introduction of devices and how to inspire students to take sustainability measurements and resolutions to apply in their daily lives.
“I think it’s important to raise awareness and for different schools to give updates on their progress in terms of sustainability,” said Duaij. “It helps encourage sustainability with the youth to create a safe and friendly environment in the kingdom for generations to come.”
BSB expatriate students Spanish-Lithuanian Valentina Bartret, 11, Pakistani Burhanuddin Huzaifa, 11, Thai-Guatemalan Miguel Contreras, 12, and Indian Kashvi Srivastava, 11, presented their project on Responsible Recycling.
And St Chris’ Jordanian Kareem Khatib, 12, German Nick Troger 12, and Indian Ayushi Chakraborty, 13, talked about their Precious Plastics Production Club.
“Although we hosted this event, we wanted to pass the baton on for next year because we want others to put their stamp on this gathering as well,” said Mr Jones. “At the end of the summit, we have a plaque which we will pass onto the next school to host. This year NBB sponsored the food and Bahrain Polytechnic gave use of the venue for free. Hopefully, all this will continue next year, bigger, better and shinier!”
SCE engineer and senior environmental specialist Sadeq Salah Rahma said: “This has been a great start. We totally support this event and will support future summits too. We believe the involvement of the younger generation is important as they are full of energy, creativity and curiosity. We also believe that awareness and education is critical in achieving sustainability in Bahrain and protecting our environment.”
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