Earth Day 2006

May 4, 2006--

Three primary schools on Nguna and Pele islands celebrated Earth Day on Saturday, April 22, with clean-ups of their communities organized by the MPA. Eles and Noaiwia Schools on Nguna and Tangovauwia School on Pele were the gathering spots for students and their bags of rubbish.

Nearly 175 children from the two islands collected hundreds kilos of rubbish from their communities, the beaches and surrounding forest. Students from Tangovauwia also participated in a poster contest. All rubbish was properly disposed of and broken glass saved to make a mosaic—art consisting of a design made of small pieces of colored stone or glass. The MPA is grateful to Port Vila Hardware for their generous donation of material for the mosaic, and Mok Store, Vila Handprints, & Eric Wong Store for donating prizes for the top rubbish collectors and poster designers.

Mr. Kalowas Watt, Chair of the MPA Management Committee, said, “It's very important for our young people to understand the impact of their actions on the environment, and to begin helping us to protect our land and reef ecosystems.”

Earth Day began in 1970, when 20 million people first celebrated the event across America . That same year, the U.S. government established the Environmental Protection Agency in response to increasing pollution affecting the environment and public health. Now Earth Day is commemorated around the world as part of efforts to protect our global environment.

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