Eastern Visayas schools garner 2015 sustainable, eco-friendly award

TACLOBAN CITY, Dec. 11 (PNA) – The 2015 National Search for Sustainable and Eco-friendly Schools this year introduced three new special categories to recognize schools promoting environmental conservation and protection.

These are the Nestlé Water Leadership Award which recognizes and promotes solutions, practices and initiatives of schools on water; the Meralco Energy Leadership Award which recognize schools that promote practices and initiatives in electrical safety, energy efficiency and conservation; and the Land Bank Green Leadership Award established for schools that demonstrate leadership in their overall green initiatives.

In Eastern Visayas, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources through the Environmental Management Bureau recognized schools for these three new categories.

For the Nestlé Water Leadership Award, the awardees are the Hilongos South Central School (elementary level), Rafael Lentejas Memorial School of Fisheries (high school level), and Naval State University (college level).

For the Meralco Leadership Award, recognized were Hilongos South Central School (elementary level), Dr. Geronimo B. Zaldivar Memorial School of Fisheries (high school level), and Naval State University (college level).

Meanwhile in the overall category, regional first placers went to the Hilongos South Central School (elementary level), Sumuroy Agro-Industrial School (secondary level), and Naval State University (college level). Each of the school received PHP15,000 through Smart Communications, one of the pioneering sponsors for the event since it was started in 2009.

Under the country’s local response to the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (UNDESD) and the ASEAN Environmental Education Action Plan (AEEAP), included in the National Environmental Education Action Plan for Sustainable Development is a national program that would encourage schools to establish sustainable and eco-friendly schools.

The school system is a vital part of our basic learning and is seen as a powerful vehicle for change. The school population, comprising of the students, teaching and non-teaching personnel, constitute a sizeable percentage of the national population.

As such, any program focused on advocacy and other multi-faceted program of activities done within the school system especially relating to environmental concerns needs to be documented, encouraged, and recognized.

Sustainable and Eco-Friendly Schools may be described as environment-friendly schools that have initiated and integrated in their instruction, research, extension and/or administration, programs which are environment-related.

The promotion of this program for the establishment and/or strengthening of sustainable and eco-friendly schools in the country had been enshrined as a priority in the ASEAN Environment Year 2015 with a theme “Empowering the Youth for a Clean and Green ASEAN”. (PNA)
FFC/SQM/Ahlette C. Reyes/egr