Around 10 Dubai Women’s College (DWC) students from the Diploma Foundations Green Team recently took part in the ‘Conservation Award for a Better Tomorrow’ held in the Grand Hyatt hotel – Bani Yas Ballroom. The event was organized by Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) in collaboration with the Knowledge and Human Development Authority, to encourage and promote members of the school community to adopt a culture of conserving water and electricity. This event was held to honor the winning schools, and the participating schools. DWC was awarded third place and received a cheque for Dhs 6,000 and a poster displaying 13% water savings and 6% electricity savings for this year.
At the start of the academic year, the Green Team started to look for ideas on how they could be more environmentally friendly. During Ramadan, they took part in activities to raise the awareness of food conservation. They also took part in activities to raise awareness of the harmful effects of using plastic bags – this resulted in plastic bags being banned in the coffee shops and cafeteria in the college premises. As part of the project, all the students in Diploma Foundations took part in research to find ways of saving water and electricity inside the college and in their homes. Students also took part in activities that included visiting Emirates Marine Environmental Group (EMEG), which is located in Ghantoot and learned the value of looking after their beaches. They took part in beach clean-ups, bird watching and mangrove planting.
In addition, 75 students from the college went on a fieldtrip to WETEX 2010 in order to learn more about saving water and electricity. The Green Team also invited DEWA into the college, to give a presentation on how students and staff could save water and electricity. One of the most exciting activities that the students took part in was when they were invited to present their environmental ideas to Al Barra Kindergarten School in Dubai. The Green Team was very excited at the prospect of visiting the school and sharing their environmental ideas with 132 KG2 students. The KG2 students were encouraged to conserve the environment by taking part in games and activities that were fun.
Farah Mohamed Al Attar, the Principal Assistant of the Al Bara’a School presented DWC with a certificate of appreciation and said, “The Green Team were friendly, prepared and engaged all the students. The activities were well organized and Everyone had fun and liked learning about all the ways they can be better with saving resources.”
Judith Doermer, DWC faculty and leader of the Green Team commented after the event, “I am very proud of DWC students and very happy that they won the award. I also think that DEWA is doing a wonderful job to help save the resources of Dubai.” Judith added that the Green Team had many responsibilities during the year and were involved in many activities. They made sure that the blinds of the classrooms were open during the day and closed at night. They also made sure that the light switches were turned off when their classes were empty. They used their laptops in a professional way, so as to not waste energy and resources. They made sure that all the windows were shut, so that cool air wasn’t lost through the window. “Another major duty for the Green Team was to make sure that their shared ‘Green Initiatives’ with other students, staff and their parents at home. “
DWC Green Team members expressed their joy at being able to contribute to their country by saving water and electricity resources. DWC student Alunnod said, “I feel that I am more responsible now because I am a student at Dubai Women’s College and I am a Green Team member. We, the Green Team, would like to thank Dr. Howard Reed – Senior Director of Dubai Women’s College for supporting the Green Team. This is the first time the Green Team has won an award for the college and we aim at winning 1st place next year.”
