Forty schools enrolled in the local Ekoskola programme were recently awarded the international Green Flag award, and other schools received silver and bronze awards in recognition of their actions to bring about significant changes to promote sustainability in their respective school and surrounding communities. There are now a total of 77 local schools flying the Green Flag ecolabel award.

The Eco-Schools programme is recognised by Unesco as a world leader in the field of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) and is formally acknowledged as the largest international ESD network of teachers and students in the world. The programme is not just about promoting care and protection of the local environment, but also of the people who live in it, the communities who depend on it, the businesses who profit from it and the ecosystems that rely on it.

Run locally by Nature Trust Malta (NTM) as representatives of the Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE), the Ekoskola programme includes a total of 121 participating schools in Malta and Gozo, with over 50,000 students actively participate in it.

NTM FEE Malta executive president Vincent Attard said the Ecoschools programme is now not only empowering more students to take an active role in sustainable development at a time when environmental issiues are now hitting our planet due to past generation mistakes, but also has integrated the UN Sustainable Development Goals so the students can do their part for the 2030 targets to be reached. He added that the programme adopts a bottom up approach – as politicians fail to take action it is hoped ordinary citizen will push for positive change.

For further information call 9942 2086 or e-mail info@naturetrustmalta.org.