British Council honors local climate change innovators
Winning projects tackled food waste, greenhouse gases and marine sustainability
The British council held earlier this week its climate change awards for local innovative projects where five different projects with a diverse approach to sustainable economy were awarded for their successful environmental efforts. The awards were presented by Country Director at the British Council Tony Skinner and Project Manager at British Council Tracey Carlin. “The mission is to establish friendship between (the UK and Kuwait). My mission is to establish relations with those wishing to build a relationship between the countries. One of the ways is engaging with (innovators), taking their initiatives and moving forward,” Skinner said before introducing the winning groups.
The first project receiving an award is called CLAP, which involves using leftover food to serve cats. The group is concerned about climate change and environmental issues. They were awarded the best food waste reduction campaign. “Food waste is energy waste. Kuwait wastes about 400,000 kilograms or six percent of total food in the world. The average person consumes two kilograms of food everyday enough to feed around 200,000 people,” said the spokesperson for the group behind CLAP. “Our project aims to reduce greenhouse gases from nitrogen waste by reusing leftover foods and giving them to cats. By distributing containers for my students, they helped collect food.”
A project called “Give and Take” won the award for the best greenhouse gas reduction project. “Our project aims to help the environment while also generating revenue for companies,” the team’s spokesperson said.
“The growth of coffee shops in Kuwait has increased methane in the atmosphere, especially with consumption and production on the rise. This leads to the increase of coffee waste which has harmful effects on the environment whereby there’s more methane than carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.”
The group said they aim to serve as a link between cafes and farmers who have composting experience. “Our method leads to different outcomes for the soil. Chemical fertilizer will produce a good appearance without the purity. Composting produces purer and more organic soil. In Kuwait, chemical fertilizer leads to plants growing in the winter rather than throughout the year.” The third project awarded at the event is called “Sustainable Future”. The project, which won the award for best private sector initiative, aims to provide certificates to companies based on certain criteria. “Our main target is the private sector due to the high carbon emissions they produce. Every certificate provides each company with an identity and credibility. Our objective is to evaluate businesses according to how green they are,” said the group’s spokesperson.
“The certification involves using a checklist where we go to inspect companies and if they suffice the criteria, they get the certification. We have categorized the checklist with bronze, silver, and gold to see if companies fit those criteria,” they explained. The fourth group, “Go Fish”, were winners of the best climate change award. They worked to spread climate change awareness for the younger generation. “Our main goal is to change bad habits and make young people more aware about climate issues. Our Instagram covers environmental issues from around the world. We have participated in many events across Kuwait. We faced a number of obstacles, including getting approvals,” said the group’s spokesperson.
“Fishing is the second largest industry in Kuwait around 50 percent demands met locally. Many organisms are under threat, due to unprecedented climate change, the presence of endangered fish and lack of awareness,” they said. “The app is simple and easy containing expert verified information.” Winners of the best social media and marketing awards are two projects by Cornerstone. The projects use a character called Raihan to raise awareness about climate change through social media. “We created Raihan, a loving character to creatively educate young children. We faced obstacles including getting sponsorships and providing new and creative content.”
“Raihan was created through our imagination with the feedback of students. Raihan is a ‘human plant’,” said the group’s spokesperson. “Our target audience is from five to 10-year-olds. We also want to indirectly reach parents through their children so they can have more awareness.” Skinner thanked all groups for their efforts at the end of the ceremony. “We hope that you will develop further, and the council is going to follow up to see the progress of your projects,” he said.