OANDO Foundation (OF), an independent charity, has initiated a project to promote environmental education and sustainable action for pupils in target schools and host communities in Lagos State with support from Sumitomo Chemical, a Japanese Chemical company.
The project, tagged ‘Clean Our World’ (COW), aims to promote environmental education and responsibility by creating awareness and empowering children and teachers in seven public primary schools and their host communities with the knowledge of plastic recycling and waste management, while encouraging the adoption of eco-conscious lifestyles.
Benefitting schools and communities include: Dele Ajomale Schools Complex (I–IV), Ilasamaja, Metropolitan Primary School, Orile-Iganmu, Olisa Primary School and Methodist Primary School, Mushin.
It is estimated that Nigeria generates over 32 million tons of solid waste annually of which over 30 per cent is plastic. There is increased flooding across cities during the rainy season due to clogged drainage systems, directly attributable to poor waste disposal techniques.
Head, Oando Foundation, Adekanla Adegoke, said the project would expose the pupils to experiential learning outside the classroom.
“We believe learning transcends the classroom, encouraging environmental education through the COW project will help pupils understand how their decisions and actions affect the environment, build knowledge and skills necessary to address complex environmental issues, explore different actions to keep our environment healthy and sustainable for the future. Not only does COW offer opportunities for experiential learning outside of the classroom enabling pupils to make connections and apply their learning in the real world, it also encourages the development of critical and creative thinking skills necessary for enhancing overall learner outcomes. We are working closely with the Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF) and relevant education agencies to implement the project across seven schools and three communities in Lagos State,” she said.
