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From:TheBahamasWeekly.com Grand Bahama
Freeport, Grand Bahama – It is often said, but very true – ‘that children are our future’. As the generation that will inherit planet Earth, there is a need for young people here at home and around the world to be educated on the ways which they can help protect the environment and extend the life of our beautiful planet. As keen protectors of our environment the Keep Grand Bahama Clean Committee (KGBCC) has teamed up with Bahamas Reef Environment Educational Foundation (BREEF), to work in collaboration with various schools on Grand Bahama Island to promote the international programme Eco-Schools, which is aimed to empower the youth to take a forward step in environmental sustainability. “KGBCC is proud to serve as the G.B. island coordinator for the Eco-Schools programme. This programme allows for students to take the lead in environmental awareness, figuring out ways to protect and preserve our environment while focusing on various aspects affecting our environment, such as energy, climate change and biodiversity.” explained Olethea Gardiner, KGBCC Co-Chairperson. “This program helps us to engage with students in fun, action-oriented learning activities which impresses upon them the importance of their role in protecting the environment.” With over forty thousand registered schools in fifty countries across Europe, Africa, the Middle East, the Caribbean, the United States, Mexico and Brazil, Eco-schools is designed to empower students to be agents of change in the sustainable world. Through a seven-step change process, students are challenged to use the resources available to them on their respective campuses and communities in a more sustainable way. Each school that successfully meets their goals are awarded the coveted, Green Flag. Recently, the Bishop Michael Eldon High School became the first institution on Grand Bahama Island to be awarded the prestigious Green Flag, due to their green efforts and with their introduction of solar energy on campus. As part of the school’s quest to maintain its status, BMES hosted a t-shirt design competition which required students to get creative, while incorporating the eco-code into their design. The winning design was produced by Miss Inae Pratt, a twelfth grader at the institution. KGBC was invited to return to the campus to award the talented designer with a cash prize and other gifts. “I am proud of Inae. She is an art student who told me before the competition that she would try her best to come up with a winning design and she did” explained Mrs. Cheng Bee Selim-Dela Pena, Eco-School Coordinator for BMES. “Members of the KGBC Committee were proud to participate in the event as judges and were extremely impressed with the level of talent and creativity displayed by the students at BMES” said Gardiner. “We couldn’t be prouder of young Miss Pratt, we hope her work will be an example to her peers and encourage them to choose sustainability in all aspects of their lives”.
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