Students from the Presentation Secondary School have been making great strides in achieving their next Green Flag, in the area of water conservation.
Students and teachers involved in the Green School Committee have been organising various activities in the school, including an extensive awareness campaign.
Over the past two years, there have been various activities to promote water conservation, both in the school and in homes. This has included poster and slogan competitions in the school and guest speakers from the EPA and Aidlink. The committee also took a cross curricular approach, liaising with both the C.S.P.E. and Art departments to organise and perform a water themed fashion show with all first year students, where each class group had to design a headpiece based on a water theme.
Each group also made a presentation on a specific water conservation theme, for example river and sea pollution. They also had a campaign for students to buy reusable bottles rather than plastic ones. The committee made intercom announcements, reminding students and teachers of the importance of recycling, and this linked in with their ongoing recycling campaign.
Last year, four Transition Year students did their part for water conservation by competing in SEAI's One Good Idea competition. They made it into the Top 50 in Ireland with their idea for water harvesting in their school, which involved using collected rainwater to flush the toilets, something which would have benefits financially and environmentally.
An awareness day was held with face painting, ribbons and posters to get the whole school community involved. Students also participated in a Walk for Water fundraising event in aid of Aidlink which is a voluntary organisation that works to improve the lives of those living in poverty in Africa.
The committee also carried out a survey and an analysis of water usage in the school, with the intention of improving water usage levels and water conservation. Both students and staff are eager and grateful for the opportunity to improve water conservation in the school as the school goes GREEN-ER.