450 school students in the UAE worked hand in hand towards sustainable solutions at EEG’s Students’ Workshop 2013

In the growth story of the UAE, it is extremely important to engage the youth, the backbone of the nation as the future of the nation lies in the young leaders’ initiatives. To enhance the potential of the young change makers and engage them in the discussions on Sustainable Development, the Emirates Environmental Group (EEG) conducted its 13th Annual Students’ Workshop from 5-7 November 2013 under the banner of “Tomorrow’s Environmentalists” at Rashid School for Boys, Dubai. This institution has supported EEG over the years to build capacity of the young minds making them more responsible towards environmental issues. The three-day workshop was themed under the broad umbrella of “Hand in Hand towards Sustainability” that covered different age groups, Junior (10 – 12 years), Sub Senior (13 – 15 years) and Senior (16 – 18 years). The Workshop also engaged the participating teachers actively where they participated in activities and shared their views and opinions on topics being discussed.

EEG conducted the workshop keeping its commitment towards the concept of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) in mind. The workshop, witnessed the presence of expert speakers from the government and businesses who spoke on the issues of “Save a Drop, Save a Life” and “Up-cycle and Green the Education” and presented the students and the teachers with key knowledge on both concepts so as to expose them to the challenges faced by the county, region and the world today and stimulated them to the idea of working in cooperation for sustainable living. 

A total of 450 students from 88 schools and 102 teachers representing all the seven Emirates of the UAE participated in the 3-day workshop. 

Mrs. Habiba Al Mar’ashi, Chairperson, EEG commenced the event with a welcome speech urging all attendees; consisting of student’s and teachers, to interact and act as sponges and absorb all the critical information and knowledge they receive during the workshop, so that they are able to leave the halls with a heightened sense of awareness and commitment towards the environment. Mrs. Al Mar’ashi shared that the students’ are the hope for tomorrow and EEG is working to ensure that they have the right tools and knowledge to lead sustainable lifestyles and moreover lead the change in society. 

The Workshop hosted a number of esteemed speakers from diverse backgrounds, all with great knowledge to share. The film and presentation by Environmental Agency of Abu Dhabi discussed the process and challenges of desalination of water in the UAE highlighting the 5 environmental priority areas in the country – climate change, water, bio diversity, air control and waste management. The presentation and discussion on “Knowing your Water Footprint” brought out the water footprint facts for the students based on their daily consumption patterns and suggested ways to reduce it by sustainable practices adopted by individuals in the society. The process of E-Waste recycling was shared and the students were explained the urgent need for adopting it. Many students pledged to recycle their old mobile phones and laptops. 

Being the implementing partner of Every Drop Matters Campaign in the UAE, the EEG team went on to anchor the “Save a Drop, Save a Life” topic and made a presentation on available sources of water in the country and loss of water during water cycle on the first day. On the last two days showed a film: Water Governance in Arab States Documentary and deliberated on water challenges and solutions undertaken in the region and globally. As promoters of a culture of recycling and waste management, EEG showed a short film on Aluminium Can recycling and demonstrated the process of paper making from the used beverage cartons. Participants were urged to participate in EEG’s upcoming campaigns of Can Collection Drive on 16 November and the Clean Up UAE from 4-12 December 2013 being conducted in all the Emirates of the UAE including Tree Plantation on 11.12.13. 

The high points of the entire three days workshop were the interactive sessions that included poster design, slogan writing and extempore debates on the issues of Save a Drop, Save a Life, Clean Up UAE, recycling for Sustainable Development and the importance of individual actions towards sustainable development. The interaction within the students was an exercise where they expressed their concerns, shared challenges and opined and deliberated amongst each other proposing pro environmental solutions for sustainable development. 

The interactive sessions and the workshop provided a platform to the students’ coming from different academic institutions to come out of their comfort areas, interact and share with the peer not known from before. It provided the skills of teamwork, creative thinking, resource sharing, time management and speaking at public forums. The workshop also provided an opportunity where not only students interacted with different groups but teachers also engaged in interactions with other teachers and students of schools apart from theirs. 

EEG is grateful to its supporters; Grand Hyatt and Rashid School for Boys Dubai, for their great show of commitment and sustenance that has allowed for the EEG to continue on conducting and rolling out such events. EEG also thanks the “Every Drop Matters”; a water partnership initiative of the UNDP and Coca Cola Company, for their continuous support.