In its efforts to champion water conservation in Malta, HSBC’s Water Programme – Catch the Drop sought to awaken the hidden creative in every youngster and enlist their talents into inspiring others to understand how to save the planet.

An enthralling storybook, Il-Vjaġġ ta’ Mila (Mila’s Journey), designed and written by the Primary students of San Ġorg Preca College Ħamrun, is just the latest in a string of publications which have become a reality thanks to the support of the HSBC campaign.

To date, the programme has helped with the publication of over 45,000 printed materials – all having water conservation as their theme. These include a booklet called Ġiġi and the Water, a colouring book named Harvey the Lifestyle Dog, an informational booklet about the Catch the Drop programme and a Maltese comic book Qatra Qatra.

Meanwhile, another sponsored book, Djamantini, won this year’s National Book Fair in the Children’s Book Section (13- to 16-year-olds) category. Djamantini’s section on water featured a number of poems, narratives and stories on the subject.

Distribution of these publications collectively reached schools, hotels, hospitals and Malta International Airport. In addition to printing production, the campaign’s sponsorship of water projects and public outreach initiatives has included presentations, theatre shows and site visits.

Catch the Drop, the largest ever national environmental and educational campaign of its kind in Malta, aims to forge a blueprint for progress on sustainability of water as a resource. Aimed to educate every schoolgoing child in Malta – comprising nearly 50,000 students – it encourages schools, corporates, NGOs, the public and local councils to actively participate in water conservation issues.