UAE students take up climate change challenge

Recent reports state that global temperatures have increased to levels not seen for 115,000 years. This puts tremendous pressure on the global ecosystem. The need of the hour is to build environment-friendly culture and foster earth-friendly habits amongst the students from an early age.
"Students at our school are encouraged to actively participate and play an important role in waste reduction and proper recycling of unavoidable waste through the motto of 'Reduce, Reuse and Recycle'," stated Poonam Heryani, head of academics, ASPAM Indian International School, Sharjah.
"Our students are sensitised to the existence and causes of environmental problems, especially global warming and climate change," she said.
The school urges it students to adopt simple environmental practices, which include using reusable bags for shopping, separating waste according to the right categories and encouraging the usage of recycled products.
The Millennium School Dubai has an Environment Club which regularly conducts awareness campaigns among students in classrooms as well as during assemblies. "The whole school is involved in the 3 Rs of Recycle, Reduce and Reuse. Some of the eco-friendly campaigns include Hydroponics project and Grow your food project," said school principal Michael Guzder.
Hydroponics is the method of growing plants using mineral nutrient solutions, in water, without soil. Due to space constraints within the school premises, The Millennium School decided to resort to soil-less farming. Saplings were rolled in thin layers of cotton and placed in mineral water. The school's "Grow your food" was held in collaboration with the Dubai Municipality. The soil was prepared and after the hydroponics project, the team started working on planting these little saplings in rows.
"We not only teach but also implement what is taught. The school has changed from conventional lights to LEDs in the office areas and classrooms thereby drastically reducing the consumption and contributing to a greener planet," Guzder said.
Another school that is leaving no stone unturned in teaching their students about conservation of environment is the Indian High School, Oud Metha. "The school has an environment club that gives students the platform they need to take action on the environmental issues they feel passionate about," said Smita Zuting, environment club coordinator at IHS.
"We have set up an aviary in the school where students take turns to inspect and interact with the birds.
Some ongoing activities include students preparing paper bags and supplying them to the school canteen to reduce the use of plastic waste; reusing old books, where books were collected by students and distributed amongst the needy children.
"Other habits to promote sustainability include inculcating among our students habit of switching off lights, fans and other electrical appliances when not in use; recycling paper. Also the school has installed water saving devices in all taps and students are informed about the use of recycled water for our school garden," Zuting added.
saman@khaleejtimes.com