Environmental conservation club

A conservation club is a group of people who share a common vision of a better environment today for tomorrow, by thinking and acting green. Presently, the club has 50 active members and 3 staff coordinators

The imperatives for environmental conservation club include

• Having a healthy environment where children can grow up without disease

• Seeing on walkways freed from filth and like all the time

• Managing our waste efficiently so that the impact on the environment is reduced to the barest minimum.

Some of our projects include.

Waste

Converting poultry dropping and wood shavings to useful organic manure.- Saying no to polythene bags by encouraging the use of the traditional shopping baskets made of raffia palm.

Transport

Encouraging our parents to have a rethink on their driving habits and go for trekking shoes, bicycles and public transport when necessary. This will help them keep fit, save cost and reduce the level of exhaust fumes emitted into the atmosphere.

Energy

Saving energy by ensuring that electrical gadgets/appliances are switched off when not in use.

Water

Conserving water through safe habits like having a bath with a bucket rather than having it directly under the shower. Washing plates in basins and not directly under running taps.

Club members meet every Tuesday 3:50pm 4.30pm to discuss or work on their group and personal projects. Such projects, chosen based on the fact that the message can influence as many people as possibly, are relatively cheap to embark on, quite innovative and sustainable. The club embarked on a group project tagged “LETS CHANGE MUMMY: SAY NOT POLYTHENE BAGS” Each club member was mandated to create and environment awareness at home through their mothers. The students urged their mothers to use the traditional shopping basket made of Raffia palm (a biodegradable material) instead of polythene bags (a non-biodegradable materials). These mothers in turn educate at least three of their friends who are not Jeptthah Mummies to join the campaign. In this way, more mothers are introduced to the campaign and the chain of awareness grows.

The students demonstrated their involvement by visible action. They made some shopping baskets using raffia palm as samples for their mummies to buy, and formally launched the project during one of P.T.A meetings, so their, other Jephthah Mummies whose children are not club members can be reached for the chain of awareness to grow the more.

The group project and other personal projects have gained international recognizing as 5 members of the club namely:

Miss Oyatogun, Funmilayo

Master Oti, Ebubechukwu

Miss Isinguzo

Master Igbokwe Onyekachi

Miss Chu, Jennifer

And one of the club co-coordinator have been invited by UNEP (United national Environment Programme) to attend the International children's conference on the environment in New London , USA from July 19 th – 24 th with their projects for exhibition and participation. Some other personal projects were submitted for the 2004 young Exo- Hero Awards and the result are still being awaited.

As part of this group project, students went on excursion to see water bodies polluted by mainly polythene bags, which do not decay. Club members are now drafting strategies on how polythene bags can remove from the streets of Port Harcourt .

The challenge before us is to get people started on thinking about environment issues as such awareness must begin at a very early age.

This year, 3 students and a staff namely:

1. Oghu, C. F. - Chaperone

2. Oyatogun, Funmilayo - Junior Board Member

3. Chukwuogo, Ifeoma - Member

4. Nwachukwu, Adaeze - Member

Was present at the the 2006 International Children's Conference on the Environment was held in Putrajaya , Malaysia from 26 th – 30 th August, 2006. Approximately 250 delegates (10-14 years old) and their Chaperons from around the world participated in this event, which enabled the children learn about the environment and share their opinions through plenary sessions, hand-on-workshops and field trips.