World Environment Day 2012:

Future generations creating awareness

Demi HEWAMANNA

When you are given a theme and just a few materials, you ask yourself, "What am I going to make and how am I going to finish all this in such a short time?" But the students from the various schools in Negombo proved that one theme can bring out many creations.

To celebrate the World Environment Day the Jetwing Group of Hotels held a competition among several schools in the Negombo region and had a grand exhibition at the Loyala College auditorium. The competition was held in two categories - Grades 6 to 9 and Grades 9 to 13 and the students were asked to create awareness among their fellow students on how waste materials can be reused in many useful ways.

The judges - Jetwing Group Chairman Hiran Cooray and Chief Guest Iranganie Serasinghe who is also a patron of the Jetwing Eternal Earth Programme (JEEP) really did have a hard time in choosing the winners for two categories.

In the Junior Category the first place went to St. Mary's College for their Hydraulic Bulldozer. Second place went to St. Mary's College as for their wind operated fan with bike chains and discarded milk maid bottle where the fan in operation creates a noise to chase away birds and animals to protect farmers' crops.

The third place went to Kochchikade Maha Vidyalaya for Candle-stand made from discarded CD's, aluminium foil, bottle caps used and match sticks.

In the Senior Category the First Place went to Loyola College for their 'chair made from discarded cardboard and table made from discarded stitched plastic cones.

The Second Place went Loyola College (Students of 11D) for their 'large oil lamp made from discarded tyres, yoghurt cups and a banana tree trunk' The Third Place was also won by Loyola College (Ravindu Banuka) for his 'Wall decoration ornament made out of straw, twigs and dried leaves and flowers'.

It was just truly amazing to see how much talent and ideas were brought out by these young children. And I was asking my friend who was with me where our minds were when we were asked to create things with just a simple theme.

Every creation, be it solo or team work, was hard and committed work and one could tell from the way each item of bottle caps, glass bottles, paper, aluminium cans, sea shells, syringes, cardboard paper, coconut shells, ice cream sticks, clay and more.

Several green programmes were held in other parts of the hotels owned by Jetwing Group to mark the World Environment Day.