Shell, Ministry of Education visit schools shortlisted for Shell Better Environment Award

The schools visited were all recipients of cash grants from Shell, which were extended to facilitate the implementation of their project ideas.

The Shell BEA Award is the UAE's foremost initiative aimed at raising awareness of environmental issues and encouraging school children to work on projects that contribute to the preservation of the environment. The awards are open to students in both government and private sector schools with entries falling into three categories - "Towards Sustainable Less Polluting Means of Transportation", Environmental Awareness Campaign and Environmental Field Study.

This year's edition of the Shell BEA Award has drawn wide participation, with schools from across the UAE submitting ideas for environmental projects. A total of 186 public sector schools were registered but only 106 were initially shortlisted for the award and were given cash grants to put their proposals into action.This list was later narrowed to form a final shortlist of 15 schools in the Environmental Field Study , 16 schools "Towards sustainable less polluting means of transportation" and 75 schools in the Environmental Awareness Field. Shell and the Ministry of Education have been conducting periodic visits to these schools to review the progress made on the project implementation.

"This program gives good example for partnership between the private and public sectors. We are proud of our continuous support for the Ministry of Education through this environmental program. The visits to the schools were part of the review process for the Shell BEA Award, and we are extremely satisfied with the pace of implementation of the project ideas," said Hussain Al Mahmoudi, Head of External Affairs and HSSE (Health, Security, Safety and Environment), Shell. "Shell is committed to the cause of preserving the environment, and has been working at several levels to raise environmental awareness. Much of these efforts are targeted at the student community. They are the citizens of tomorrow, and we realize their involvement is crucial to the success of any meaningful endeavor towards environmental protection."

Abdullah Bilal Al shamisi, Director of students and scouts activities, Ministry of Education, said, "The response to the 2006 edition of the Shell BEA Award has been overwhelming. More than the number of submissions, what has really made an impression on us is the quality of the project ideas. We are confident that events such as the Shell BEA Award will help mould a generation that is not only seized of the need to protect the environment, but is actually willing to make the extra effort needed to keep the world safer and cleaner."