THE SMALL EARTH NEPAL

1 December 2012

On the occasion of Global Day of Action, The Small Earth Nepal (SEN) in collaboration with Vinayak Shiksha Niketan, Thimi, organized a one-Day exhibition of articles prepared from discarded matters at Bhaktapur Durbar Square of Bhaktapur District today. The program was supported by the Solid Waste Management Technical Support Center, Ministry of Local development and WWF Nepal.

More than five thousand people observed the exhibition. The exhibition provided the platform for children to show their talent, skills and creativeness as well as to build their capacity for public speaking. It was also an opportunity for the schools to share knowledge regarding solid waste management. The articles made by the students not only attracted the visitors but also inspired them to adopt the 3R (Reuse, Recycle and Reduce) principle.

The objective of the program was to sensitize the students and public on efficient waste disposal methods and encourage them to recycle and reuse to minimize the generation of waste from their houses, schools and offices. It also aimed to aspire for behavioural changes in children and the people leading them towards possible ways of solid waste management to minimize GHG emission in small scale. Moreover, it was a call for action to the world leaders meeting at the climate negotiation i.e COP18 which is ongoing at Doha, Qatar, delivering the key message “It’s high time to take action for climate and climate justice from ground level”.

The Global Day of Action on climate change occurs every year on the first Saturday of annual meeting of Conference of Parties (COP) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). People from all around the world come together on that day to demand urgent action on climate change, and climate justice, from the governments of the world meeting at the annual climate talks. To remark this day with a demonstration, 16 schools of Kathmandu Valley presented various decorative and useful items prepared from discarded materials with the theme “Best from Waste: Childrens’ Move for Climate Action.”

In the closing of the exhibition, Mr. Surendra Bikram Prajapati, Principal of Vinayak Shiksha Niketan gave his vote of thanks. To motivate the students towards sustainability of their utilization of the waste, certificates were provided to all the participating schools by Dr. Madan Lall Shrestha, Academician, Nepal Academy of Science and Technology (NAST) and Advisor at SEN.