Dubai students pledge to protect nature

Over 250 students from seven schools in Dubai participated in the Beyond COP21 Symposium.

Whom do we need to protect this earth from? That was the million dollar question posed before an audience of over 250 students, teacher, and parents at the Beyond COP21 Symposium.
Asha Alexander, principal of The Kindergarten Starters (KGS), Dubai, who looked for an answer from the audience said: "We need to protect the earth from ourselves. Ironically, we destroy the natural rain forests and build artificial sanctuaries. It is not enough. We need to galvanise the momentum and come together in building a sustainable future."
The symposium, inspired by the COP21 Paris, where the global leaders reached a universal agreement to combat climate change, was held at the KGS campus in Dubai on Saturday.
Students wrote down pledges to create a sustainable future and took part in activities.
Kavyashri, a 14-year-old Indian student from Our Own English High School, Sharjah, said: "I have experienced a lot more interaction in this symposium compared to other workshops I have attended."
Kumail Amir, a 12-year-old Pakistani student from Westminster School, Dubai, said: "I realised that as a student, I too can galvanise change and we can, as a group, save the planet."
The symposium was the first such meeting after COP21 and was spearheaded by Peter Milne, founder/director of Target4Green Educational Consultancy and Training Ltd. Milne spoke about how 'people power' can change things around and combat issues related to climate change.
Ida Tillish, director-general of Emirates Wildlife Society in association with World Wild Life (EWS-WWF) said that 2015 was the hottest year. "It was a year of devastating forest fires, the heat wave in the Arctic and the world being in the danger zone in climate change according to scientists."
However, she also spoke about the positive changes in 2015, the COP21 Symposium on climate change, the UN Sustainable Development Goals being put into action and the reduced CO2 emissions. "In Dubai, there is a bright future to achieve sustainability goals, with all students and teachers in different schools who are actively engaged in saving nature and their environment," said Tillish.
dhanusha@khaleejtimes.com

Dhanusha Gokulan

dhanusha@khaleejtimes.com