During the 6 months between October 2007 and March 2008, WasteServ Malta Ltd has made no less than 163 school visits at 78 different schools, reaching over 10,000 students. As part of the Company’s commitment to environmental education, WasteServ has delivered numerous presentations to students, parents and school staff, targeting various age groups, spanning from Kindergarten to Post Secondary levels.
Most of the educational content targeting schools pivots around waste management, and promotes the 3Rs philosophy. WasteServ’s school visits are supported by other initiatives that aim to inculcate a culture that is environmentally friendly. A roaming informative exhibition on waste management travels around schools. The exhibition is sometimes used in conjunction with other events such as parents’ day or environmental weeks. For the very young, Xummiemu hosts various puppet shows as a means of opening up a dialogue with primary school students and going to the grassroots.
Vince Magri, Chief Executive Officer at WasteServ Malta Ltd said: “It is so encouraging to experience at first hand the increased awareness of the waste problem and to see schools implementing waste management practices to support classroom learning. The demand for our schools sessions and on-site field trips has increased drastically, and we are levelled with remarkable and challenging questions from children during our visits.”
“Children are always so enthusiastic to learn practical things that they can take home with them. They report dirty Bring In Sites in their town or village and ask parents to separate waste and save energy”, he continued. “They’re always astonished at the quantities of recyclable materials we show them, and when we tell them what happens to items such as spent batteries.”
Comment from a Year 3 Student: “I tell mama that it is wrong to put everything in one bag. Now I know what I need to tell her to persuade her – if we keep on throwing away everything in one bag, we won’t have a healthy environment which will affect our health. She will listen to me for sure!”
The use of Bring-In Sites is promoted in schools by means of hands-on events both within the schools and on-site. Schools are supplied with waste separation bins, so as to introduce the children with the actual separation of waste besides promoting the separation of batteries and organic material in special bins and containers for compost. Other site visits to waste facilities such as to Civic Amenity sites and the Maghtab Complex are also organized.