Schools celebrate environment day

SCHOOLS throughout the country commemorated this year’s World Environment Day last week with various activities, including tree planting. In Gembogl, Chimbu, Conservation Environment Protection Authority (Cepa) special project officer Sanson Mark urged students, teachers, school boards and parents to be environmentally conscious. “God created the environment first before He created man to take charge of the environment,” he said.

“We must all, therefore, look after, protect and conserve the environment for future generations.” Mark said this at the launch of the 2021 World Environment Day (WED) celebration on Wednesday by 10 primary schools in Chimbu’s Gembogl. The children of the Kundiawa Pikinini Library School committed themselves as “eco warriors” in line with the 2021 World Environment Day theme “Ecosystem restoration”.  The young eco warriors displayed posters they had drawn, performed skits and read poems and participated in other activities that they had prepared over the past two weeks. The children, between the ages of five and eight, performed in front of the Chimbu education division office and were led by school head teacher Rose Kum and her staff. Also, a Four Square elementary school in Kundiawa also staged similar activities celebrating the day. In Central, students of Porebada Primary School and Redscar High School took part in the coastal marine clean-up to commemorate the World Ocean Day. The cleaning started in the school area and down to the beach where both National Maritime Safety Authority (NMSA) environment protection staff joined the students to clean the beachfront.

Environment protection manager Pawa Limu said the cleaning up was part of their responsibility to protect and educate people on marine life and cleaning the oceans. “We used to travel to maritime provinces to clean up the oceans, but due to the Covid-19, we could not so we visited places in Central instead,” he said. Porebada deputy head teacher Kute Nokae thanked NMSA for recognising their school out of many others to participate in the cleanup and also educate the students about the importance of marine life and a clean ocean and beach. In the National Capital District on Friday, several primary schools planted about 300 tree seedlings to commemorate World Environment Day.

The Buk Bilong Pikinini Library learning centres in Lae, Morobe; Goroka, Eastern Highlands; and, Lorengau in Manus, were also selected to participate in the Bank South Pacific (BSP) financial group-sponsored commemoration. As part of its “Go green” campaign, BSP nominates eco ambassadors from each of its branches to take the lead in the annual programmes. BSP eco ambassador Eric Tassman, who visited Sevese Morea Elementary School, said the BSP Waigani Drive Branch was delighted to be part of the celebration in promoting this year’s theme.

BSP corporate sponsorship manager Amelia Minnopu said World Environment Day was celebrated annually on June 5 and “our selected branches are observing the day with tree planting programmes today”. “In NCD, we selected St Theresa, Boreboa, Ted Diro, Taurama, Kouderika and Severse Morea primary schools to participate in the celebration,’ she said. “Children from the BSP-supported Buk Bilong Pikinini Library Learning Centre in Lae and Goroka also joined us. “Tomorrow (Saturday), BSP Lorengau will lead a cleanup programme under its Lukautim Solwara initiative around the town’s beach front with the Lorengau Buk Bilong Pikinini children.” Minnopu said thanked PNG Forestry for providing tree seedlings for the tree-planting programme.