Global Citizenship Litter & Waste and Global Citizenship Energy School of the Year Awards

For a third year extra dimension was added to the Global Citizenship Litter and Waste and Global Citizenship Energy themes of the Green-Schools programme.  Thanks to our sponsors Irish Aid we celebrated with 16 Green-Schools working on these themes at a special award ceremony in Athlone on Thursday, May 19. Both primary and secondary schools were selected as regional winners for the outstanding work that took place in their schools over the past two years.

The winners received a theme pennant and a special trophy to state that they were chosen as regional winner for the 2021/2022 academic year as well as their Green Flag.

The Regional winners for regions South, Dublin, Eastern/Midlands and Northern/Western regions were as follows:

Global Citizenship Litter & Waste

  • Dublin: St. Christopher’s Primary School  and St. Michael’s College
  • Eastern/Midlands regional winners: Scoil Niocláis Naofa and Scoil Chriost Ri
  • Northern/Western regional winners: Brackloon National School and St. John Bosco Community College
  • Southern regional winners: Muinefliuch NS and Kilkenny City Vocational School

Global Citizenship Energy  

  • Dublin regional winners: St. Ronan’s N.S. and Wesley College Dublin
  • Eastern/Midlands regional winners: St. Mary’s JNS and St. Gerards School
  • Southern regional winners: Burgess N.S. and St. Peter’s College Secondary School
  • Northern/Western regional winners: SN Mhuire Letterfrack and Ballinamore CS

At the ceremony we announced the National Global Citizenship Schools of the Year award to four schools.

Muinefliuch NS for their work on the theme including:

  • Huge improvement on GC Awareness survey
  • Created a wormery
  • Built new playground area using natural resources
  • Held Action week with a different theme each day so all levels of the school could participate
  • Posted pictures in local paper
  • Green Code: Pick up litter or plant a tree, anything to keep our world healthy

Muinefliuch NS were unable to attend the ceremony, so they received a special delivery of the awards at their school on Monday the 23rd of May when they celebrated their flag raising. See video of the day plus a representation of their work as outlined by members of their Green-Schools committee here. Well done to everyone in Muinefliuch NS for their fantastic efforts!

The other National Winners are:

Scoil Chriost Ri  

  • Increased awareness from poor to excellent 
  • Eliminated all plastic cutlery from canteen 
  • TY students created a video on how to use bins correctly  
  • Reduced plastic bottles from 96 to 21 per day in recycling 
  • Held Sustainability week highlighting Bins, Say no to Plastic, Fairtrade, Fast Fashion, and Air Quality
  • Green Code  “ Stand Together for the World Tomorrow”   

SN Mhuire Letterfrack 

  • Improvement on GC Awareness survey, conducted bi-annually 
  • Action Day 1 involved the parents, past pupils, members of the local community and other Green campus committees whole community to participate 
  • Displayed sustainable alternatives to household items to inform parents and community 
  • 5th and 6th class organised Action Day number 2 with a climate strike in Letterfrack village
  • Green Code: The light is bright, Let’s put up a fight against Climate change    

Ballinamore CS 

  • Monthly carbon footprint test 
  • New initiatives discussed in class and in central and student council meetings 
  • Uses solar panels to power computer rooms and technology areas  
  • Held school clothes collection, gathering 1400kg of clothes which raised €560 for Irish Guide Dogs 
  • Held Fairtrade Fortnight
  • Green Code “With Sustainable living and living as one,  Our future’s will be bright, our future’s will be won” 

Well done to all the winning schools!