Dow marine conservation program ‘a big success’
KUWAIT: Dow Chemical, in partnership with The en.v Initiative (en.v) and implementing partner Kuwait Society for Protection of Animals and Their Habitat (K’S PATH), announced yesterday the significant achievements of the Dow Marine Conservation Program (DMCP) Summer Awareness Campaign which concluded earlier this week. The campaign which lasted for 13 days over a period of four weeks, managed to attract a total of 1,500 visitors at three key commercial centers around Kuwait, with 222 families signed up to participate in future DMCP beach clean-ups. The DMCP is an integral component of Al Yaal, a nationwide marine conservation initiative to protect Kuwait’s rich marine ecosystem.
At each of the three locations, Al Yaal staff assembled a faux beach setup constructed of recycled materials usually found on beaches, such as shells, plastic bottles, bags, and clean sand, with the help of shovels, sand sifters, rakes and gloves. The staff also displayed a series of photographs documenting successes and accomplishments of previous clean-ups, where volunteers had spotted and rescued endangered species. The booth also included before and after shots of cleaned up beaches, it showcased educational fun facts about Kuwait’s marine environment and offered a variety of fun games and activities for the visitors and volunteers.
“DMCP’s summer awareness campaign was a tremendous success and we are pleased to witness this initiative conclude for this season with a fruitful accomplishment,” stated Jamel Attal, Managing Director at Dow Chemical in Kuwait. “At Dow, we firmly believe in the importance of engaging community members in sustainable practices and we are delighted to be part of an initiative that seeks out members of the public, educates them about the importance of sustainable practices and offers them an opportunity to play an active role in making a positive change and preserving Kuwait’s marine environment.”
Al Yaal staff along with volunteers from K’S PATH, Spread the Passion and I AM Challenge - Kuwait staged demonstration beach clean-ups, answered visitor queries and questions about various environmental activities and organized fun recycling games. They also actively encouraged registration for future clean-ups. Other volunteers also walked around in the vicinity of Al Yaal’s display area carrying photo-cards of cleaned up sites and a registration clipboard to gauge the interest of community members to partake in future cleanups. All volunteers across organizations successfully raised awareness and drove activity at the booth for a total of 165 hours.
“We are very pleased with the interest our Summer Awareness Campaign has garnered from members of the community in Kuwait. Raising awareness amongst the general public and providing opportunities for citizens to actively participate in positive change is key to the success of en.v’s social programs”, stated Zahed Sultan, Managing Director of the The en.v Initiative.
The Al Yaal initiative focuses on conserving ecologically rich marine habitats along the Bay of Kuwait and islands with two key sites, Sulaibikhat and Doha, which are home to many species of flora and fauna at risk from man-made pollution. To date, Al Yaal has manually collected over 19000 kgs (19 tonnes) of waste. Each beach clean-up is conducted after securing permit from the Kuwait Ministry of Interior and follows the program methodology and defined safety guidelines. Volunteers are briefed on site and each clean-up is assessed on a number of key performance indicators.
K’S PATH Chairman and Founder Ayeshah Al Humaidhi noted, “We are delighted by the positive outcome of the summer awareness drive and the educational role it played in sensitizing Kuwait’s community to the importance of protecting our natural marine habitats for posterity. Over the past three years, we have expanded our focus as the implementation partner of the program to visit schools, exhibitions and youth groups to mobilize them to clean up habitats that are nesting grounds for a variety of species including flamingos, mudskippers, spiny tailed lizards, and many migratory birds. It is encouraging to see schools and visitors at the drive show a collective interest in pro-active measures as well such as responsible waste management and recycling.”
Dow combines the power of science and technology to passionately innovate what is essential to human progress. The Company connects chemistry and innovation with the principles of sustainability to help address many of the world’s most challenging problems such as the need for clean water, renewable energy generation and conservation, and increasing agricultural productivity.