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It is a great pleasure for me to be here today, before an audience consisting mainly of children, students, young people with vision, strength and will to shape a sustainable future for our country.
Honourable Minister, dear Mrs Michailidou, your presence here today is a clear demonstration of your willingness to support the efforts of schools that cultivate environmental awareness and positive attitudes and behaviours towards the environment.
The Environment Commissioner's Office, as part of its mission, organises workshops, seminars and lectures and in this way tries to contribute to raising public awareness of environmental issues and to fostering environmental awareness and culture. In every opportunity we have to share thoughts, ideas and experiences and interact with the public of any age, we create bridges towards understanding, cooperation and change for a better tomorrow. Such a bridge, I believe, is what we are creating with you today.
That is why I would like to thank the Director of the school, Mr. Antonis Stavrou, for inviting and organizing today's event and for the opportunity to present, together with the Director of the Office of the Minister of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment, Mr. Theodolos Makrygiannis, the "Zero Waste to Landfill" project in the context of our broader goal of waste reduction.
Climate change is one of the most topical and serious challenges facing our planet. The impacts of climate change affect the environment, the economy, society and human health. That is why we all have a duty to react before it is too late. One of the most effective actions we can take is to reduce our carbon footprint, i.e. the amount of greenhouse gas emissions, which can be achieved by adopting sustainable practices such as recycling, composting and rational waste management, but also by limiting rampant consumerism.
Zero Waste to Landfill is a programme that aims to do just that. It was announced by my predecessor and current Minister of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment Dr. Maria Panayiotou in April 2023 and is a joint initiative of First Lady Filippas Karsera Christodoulides and the Office of the Environment Commissioner to transform the Presidential Palace into a Zero Waste to Landfill Building. The implementation of the action at the Presidential Palace is at an advanced stage, and the effort has been transferred to all Ministries and Deputy Ministries.
We are pleased to note that this initiative has started to be transferred to schools as well. The first school to join the programme is the Episkopi Limassol High School in November. Today we are here at the second school that has asked to join the programme. The importance of schools' participation in Zero Waste is huge for both environmental and educational reasons. I am filled with hope that schools, the nurseries of our country's future citizens, are taking initiatives and actions to protect the environment, thus cultivating environmental awareness in children, instilling good attitudes and habits and a sense of individual responsibility towards the environment.
In conclusion, I would like to congratulate the school management, the teachers and especially you, the students, for the initiative you are launching today. Your participation in the project will give you the opportunity to make your school a pioneer in sustainable waste management. And with every step you take towards this goal, know that you are helping to protect the environment and preserve nature for future generations. And I am sure that you will inspire other schools with your example.
Thank you and I wish you every success.
(EN/ΘΘ/ΑΦ)
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