Abu Dhabi: At an age when boys of his peers spend their time playing games, 11-year-old Flavian Abe Sam from Abu Dhabi is busy trying to protect the environment. Over the last three months he has collected about 675kg of old newspapers and 60 mobile phones as part of Emirates Environment Group’s (EEG) recycling drive.
“All of us have to do our part in protecting the environment and a little effort will go a long way,” said this sixth grader from Abu Dhabi Indian School, Al Wathba. He has already submitted 450kg of old newspapers to EEG’s ‘Recycle, Reforest, Repeat’ campaign and accumulated 225kg for the second lot.
Tireless effort
It was a cleanliness drive at school when Sam was only six years old that sparked his interest in environmental protection drives. He has since participated in several campaigns including can collection, paper recycling and tree plantation.
The past few weeks have seen him visiting electronic shops, offices, neighbours and friends to collect unused phones.
“I recently read an article about the improper disposal of cellphones which are known to contain toxic substances,” he said. For every 30 mobiles he submits to EEG, a tree gets planted in the latter’s premises.
All rounder
Apart from being an eco-warrior, Sam is equally adept at academics, fine arts and martial arts. In 2016, he received the Shaikh Hamdan Award for Distinguished Students. He has won many accolades including Child Prodigy UAE, World Science Contest (18th position) and gold medal at the National Karate Championship. This year, he came first in the UAE for the Singapore Math Olympiad in the Grade 5 category.
The writer is an Abu Dhabi-based freelancer
