Two groups of students from Coláiste Chiaráin have reached the regional final of the ECO UNESCO Young Environmentalist Awards 2018, which will be held in the National University of Ireland, Galway, on Wednesday, April 11.
The Eco-Unesco Young Environmentalist Awards is a national competition where all schools in the country are invited to submit projects which raises awareness, understanding and knowledge of the environment.
All the transition year students at Coláiste Chiaráin are studying environmental studies since September as part of their school programme under the guidance of their teacher, Ms Marie Geraghty.
The students have participated in two workshops which covered a wide range of environmental topics, including waste management, sustainable design, energy and global warming. The students’ knowledge has now enabled them to work on the Green Schools initiative.
The two projects which will represent Colaiste Chiarain, Athlone in the semi-finals next month are 'The Big Bite' and 'Water pollution in the oceans and its effects on animals'.
The Big Bite - Kate Nally, Katie McGrath, Laura Johnson, Cara Kinsella, Kelly Ennis and Alex McDonald - examines how sharks benefit our environment and how they are critically important for our eco system.
'Water pollution in the oceans and its effects on animals' - Aaron Henry Devaney, Dean Reynolds and Daniel Westman - examines the damage pollution has caused to the oceans and to the thousands of creatures that have inhabited it. It also looks at animals at risk from climate change.
Well done and all the best to the students at the regional final.