Students from Glenties represented Donegal at the recent Ulster semi-finals of the ECO-UNESCO Young Environmentalist Awards this week.
St Columba’s Comprehensive School in Glenties brought their project to the competition, along with 42 other schools across Ulster for the prestigious contest on Thursday at the Lough Neagh Discovery Centre in Craigavon.
The Young Environmentalist Awards recognise young people who have taken environmental action in their school or local community, or have came up with new and creative solutions in order to tackle environmental problems.
As Donegal’s sole representative on the Ulster stage, the St Columba’s Glenties students were praised for their development of a sustainable and eco-friendly alternative to fossil fuel using seaweed from the Donegal coast.
Speaking from the Ulster semi-finals, Elaine Nevin, national director of ECO-UNESCO, said: “The ECO-Dens and Young Environmentalist Awards are some of the most exciting events in the ECO-UNESCO calendar. It is great to continue this year’s provincial semi-finals at Lough Neagh Discovery Centre again. The passion and problem-solving initiative of these young people’s projects, including those from Donegal, offers great hope for the fight against climate change and reminds us that we can all play our part, from a community to a national level.”
Ms Nevin continued: “This year, we have over 500 young people representing 78 groups across 26 counties, including Donegal, with projects addressing key problems like climate change, biodiversity, and waste. With such a high standard of entries, it certainly won’t be an easy decision for our judges. We are excited to see who makes the final and look forward to crowning winners across 30 junior and senior level categories in May. Regardless, the real winner is the future of climate activism, in the safe hands of these incredibly bright young people.”
