Dubai: The Waste Management Department of Dubai Municipality organised 43 activities for school students during 2017.
Around 8,200 students at all levels benefitted from these activities and the most notable among them was an awareness exhibition on sustainable environmental practices, Abdul Majeed Abdul Aziz Al Saifaie, director of the department and Head of the Awareness Team on Sustainable Waste Management in Dubai Municipality, said in a press release on Monday.
He said Dubai Municipality was able to activate the community participation through its initiative, ‘An Hour with the Cleaning Worker,’ which was attended by 2,242 volunteers from various categories such as employees, students, families, People of Determination and those who are interested in environmental service and city cleaning, representing 48 governmental and private bodies.
“The volunteers, who joined the community initiative helped to undertake cleaning operations such as removing cigarette butts on beaches, random posters in commercial areas and the waste on shores as well as cleaning the industrial and residential areas.
“They also contributed in creating awareness among the public about cleanliness. Last year, we managed to collect nearly 400,000 cigarette butts during cleaning the beaches by using 1,100 working hours.”
He said that through the Awareness Team on Sustainable Waste Management, Dubai Municipality aims to develop awareness among all segments of the society, especially students, and to involve them in issues related to sustainable waste management and the general environmental issues in Dubai through a series of lectures, awareness programs and initiatives that contribute to enhancing opportunities to achieve social responsibility towards the emirate’s environment.
