The Environment Society Oman- The Green School Initiative
The Green School Initiative
The project that we have chosen to support within ESO is the ‘Green School Initiative’. The aim of the project is to raise environmental awareness within schools and the broader community. This was something that Emily was very involved in at the schools that she attended. This project aims to encourage students, school staff and parents to actively participate in minimising their ecological footprint and give environmental awareness a higher profile on the school curriculum in Oman!
Congratulations to all the schools, students and staff that took part in the Green School Initiative. These are the winning schools for each category.
Water Management
1st Place - Al Amal School, Muscat
The project aimed to recycle ablution water for irrigation and afforestation for a miniature garden of hope and to raise awareness about the importance of water conservation for a healthy environment. They achieved their aims by using water leaked from water fountains to irrigate plants, the students were trained to install water saving parts in taps and clean water tanks. They designed an environmental filter to recycle ablution water from the laundry to irrigate crops in Al Amal Green Garden and they had training on the culture of using modern technology to irrigate crops.
2nd Place - Al Khalil bin Shazan School, South Batinah
A fruitful ablution project aimed to reuse ablution water to provide irrigation for trees reducing the use of clean water in irrigation operations and thus reducing the cost of water consumption in the school whilst protecting the environment. They achieved this by creating three ground tanks to collect grey water from 100 student taps and ablution faucets, by planting local trees and plants on the premises and using the water from the tanks for irrigation. They saved approximately one thousand Omani rials from the school utility bills in 3 months by implementing this project.
3rd Place - Al Hasan bin Al Haitham School, Al Dahirah
The project aimed to establish a water project to rationalise water consumption in the school and make use of the grey water to irrigate crops in the school and raise fish to create a sustainable water system as an integrated multi tributary system for volunteer work in partnership with individuals and community institutions. They achieved this by installing a ground tank that collects grey water coming through the pipelines of the laundry, water refrigerators and air conditioners. They introduced modern methods of irrigation to the school and they planted 300 seedlings from Sidr, Al Ghaf and Al Shuq in Al Arid park and installed solar power lights to facilitate the movement of farmers at night.
Waste Management
1st Place - Suliman bin Abbad School, North Batinah
The project aimed to reduce the accumulation of waste and encourage recycling to enhance the school environment. Students were encouraged to make use of recycled materials as well as preserving natural resources and educated about the social, economic and environmental outcomes especially by encouraging the culture of industry and innovation among students. They achieved this by creating an environmentally friendly air conditioner that is made from recycled materials including palm leaves and plastic. They also set up a small scale factory to produce grains from unused bread and other derivatives for animal consumption to sell to shepherds and bird breeders.
2nd Place - Raihana bint Zaid School, North Batinah
‘Give materials another chance by recycling it.’ An integrated project that aimed to educate the community about the importance of recycling plastic, paper, glass and to enhance cooperation between the school and the local community while developing new ideas to recycle the waste for the economic benefits of the school and the community. The students achieved this by selling approximately 821 kg of paper, the money gained was used to serve the schools projects. 12kg of glass containers were collected and distributed to families that produce it and approximately 3kg of plastic was recycled into reusable items. The students then delivered workshops and awareness campaigns for the wider community on the importance of recycling.
3rd Place - Qufaifa School, North Sharqiya
The project aimed to spread environmental and health awareness both in the school and with the local community to create a spirit of challenge, work and innovation in the field of environment. They achieved this in partnership with the municipality of Ibra preparing and cleaning the schools backyard of debris and weeds. They reached out to volunteer teams within the region to carry out campaigns, exhibitions and workshops on the importance of a paper waste disposal and recycling. They then set up student start ups with tips and methods of utilising waste beautifully and efficiently.
Energy management
1st Place - Wadi bani Omar School, North Batinah
The project aimed to reduce electricity consumption by 25% through spreading awareness about electrical consumption and replacing it with renewable energy sources as a more sustainable choice as well as creating community partnerships with various organisations. The project reduced electricity consumption by 87.054%. Solar energy was introduced to operate some devices in the school: the science laboratory refrigerator, lamps and fans, the interactive whiteboard in the science lab, the school bell, the microphone, the flashlights and the water fountains. The students launched an ideal home competition to encourage parents to reduce electricity consumption in their homes. 25 homes participated in the first phase of the competition and 27 homes in the 2nd phase.
2nd Place - Hafsa bint Omar School, Al Dakhiliah
Wamid project consists of applications and programs aimed at helping individuals and the local community to improve energy efficiency, implement awareness programs and expand the use of renewable energy in order to enhance environmental sustainability and create a generation aware of energy management and a generation capable of preserving national resources for future generations. They achieved this by creating Wamid application for smart phones; the application includes various icons such as consumer bills, electricity rationing methods for the most energy consuming devices, awareness, videos, and sites related to rationalisation of energy consumption. They used the Tistahel awareness harvesting program and a smart switch based on the technology of monitoring the consumed energy associated with different electrical devices using IOT technology through a smart phone application. They also used solar energy to run the water fountain in school and create a temporary school bell.
3rd Place - Khawla bint Thalaba School, South Al Batinah
The project aimed to establish the renewable energy management policy and spread it as a culture within the school environment and the external community and reduce the monthly financial costs of the schools electricity bills. They achieved this by installing solar lights in the façade and courtyard at the school to reduce the use of electrical energy. Sustainability practices were introduced in the classrooms to rationalise energy consumption. An awareness campaign was launched via social media to educate parents about the importance of rationalising consumption.
See eso.org.om for further information.
Natalie