Environment Society of Oman Launches the Second Edition of Namat Competition for Public Schools

The Environment Society of Oman (ESO) has launched the second phase of the Namat Competition for 2021-2022, supported by Veolia Oman and Emily’s Garden Previously known as the Green School Competition, the contest aims to encourage eco-friendly awareness and promote a conservation culture within schools across the Sultanate by tasking students to come up with sustainable ideas to combat environmental issues. ESO has opened the door for all government schools in Oman (grades 5-12) to register from 20th December 2021 until 2nd January 2022 through the website https://eso-edu.com/green-school/gs-registration/?lang=ar

“We are delighted to see how ESO has come forth to nurture a culture of sustainability in our students. The first phase of the competition had an incredible impact, and the teams worked relentlessly to complete their projects, with nine schools from six different governates ultimately taking the title,” said H.E. Dr. Abdullah bin Khamis Ambusaidi, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Education for Education from Ministry of Education. “This competition continues to inspire young people to work harder, promote critical and creative thinking skills and encourage community engagement. We are excited to see all the new ideas they will come up with for phase two.”

Seeking to contribute to the implementation of the goals set by the United Nations on education for sustainable development, the project is sponsored by Veolia Oman, a leading global and regional resource management company, and Emily’s Garden, a memorial fund of the late Emily Jewitt, an environmental activist in Oman and the Netherlands. 

 “We chose to support this initiative mainly because of Emily’s passion for the environment. She was always involved in environmental activities at the schools that she attended and this is our way of giving back to Oman, her home for nearly six years,” said Juliet, Emily’s Mother from Emily’s Garden. “In its essence, Emily’s Garden is all about improving the impact that humans have on the world. We believe that all students deserve the opportunity to be educated on environmental sustainability practices and lead rewarding lives that support their dreams for a brighter future.” 

Erwan Rouxel, Chief executive officer from Veolia Oman commented, “Environmental awareness is important because it has great effects on health and socio-economic development. It’s vital to introduce environmental literacy to students at a young age for them to understand the fragility of our environment and the importance of its conservation. This partnership with Environment Society of Oman is our latest effort to support the education and engagement of youth on environmental issues and a marvellous step towards instilling a proactive attitude among the youth.”  

Namat Competition encourages the participating schools to form a team consisting of students and members from the faculty and parents’ council. Each team is required to identify an existing environmental threat within their school or community under one of the following themes: ‘Best School in Waste Management’, ‘Best School in Water Management’, and ‘Best School in Energy Management’. The teams are then expected to formulate an action plan to raise awareness and mitigate those concerns. From December 2021 to June 2022, the teams will implement their ideas then submit a final report on the results. Reports will be shortlisted and the qualified schools will submit a final report to ESO. After a comprehensive evaluation and school visits, the winners will be announced in June 2022. The winning schools will receive a cash prize of OMR 1,000 OMR for 1st place, OMR 300 for 2nd place, and OMR 150 for 3rd place. 

To participate in the initiative, students are required to fill in an online application form with their chosen theme along with their action https://eso-edu.com/green-school/gs-registration/?lang=ar.