Home truths

Sustainability. In its widest sense it is the greatest challenge facing the world today. Global warming, loss of tropical rainforests and depletion of natural resources are happening faster than at any other time in history.

Rapid growth in world population, coupled with the resource-intensive lifestyles we have developed over the last 150 years, are largely responsible for the difficult situation we find ourselves in today.

We are living on this planet as if there is no tomorrow and what we fail to realise is that this is our home; our only home. We have to look after this planet and make sure that we take whatever action necessary to develop a sustainable way of life and reduce environmental damage.

A very good starting point for this is our schools. It is only through education that we will be able to make the long-term lifestyle changes needed.

Schools exist to give children the knowledge and skills they need to become active members of society. Children are generally very interested in environmental issues, and many are rightly worried about them. In all of our schools, Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) should become an important part of the curriculum.

Many environmental issues can easily be taught in subjects such as geography and science, but ESD should really be spread across all subjects, like maths, English and history. Even art offers plenty of opportunities for investigating environmental topics.

In many GEMS schools, pupils undertake environmental projects which often involve the local community. Children love project work and there is a whole range of initiatives in which schools can participate, such as:

Recycling waste - We all produce a huge amount of waste. Thankfully a lot of it can be recycled. Schools can have recycling bins for paper, cans, bottles and even old clothes. They can also collect recycling material from the local community.

Conserving water - No one in Dubai needs reminding that water is a very precious resource. Students can measure water usage in schools and see how it can be reduced in their own homes.

Decreasing power consumption - Electricity bills can be reduced by switching off lights in classrooms with good daylight, and by turning down air conditioning in rooms which are not occupied.

Habitat planting - Growing different sorts of plants encourages diverse bird and insect populations. Planting foods like runner beans and tomatoes also helps children to understand where food comes from and how we can produce it organically, without the use of harmful pesticides.

School buildings also have an important role to play. All new school buildings should be very energy efficient and environmentally friendly. All new GEMS schools currently being designed will adhere to the green building certification scheme LEED.

Half of all carbon dioxide emitted is related to energy use in buildings, so it is important that we design sustainable school buildings. Key features of such schools would be:

High levels of insulation - This reduces heat gain which in turn reduces air conditioning load.

More natural ventilation - We seem to have forgotten the lesson of wind towers, which were very effective in naturally ventilating buildings in this part of the world.

Good use of daylight - We have abundant sunlight here, and by using ‘light pipes', which bring the sun into closed areas, even internal corridors can have natural daylight.

Use of renewable energy sources - This is especially for wind and solar power. We have good wind all year round. The benefit of this is that it is available 24 hours a day. We also of course have very strong sunlight, so the use of photovoltaic panels here makes perfect environmental sense.

Our schools should also be designed in such a way that the buildings themselves become learning tools. As an example, all the electricity and water meters in the school can have remote digital real-time displays in the science laboratory area, so that energy usage can be monitored.

It is important that we set new standards for a new generation of school buildings, rather than simply rebuilding new schools along the lines of old school models.

Our schools can become models of sustainability. If our children know that their school buildings are sustainable, then we are not only raising their awareness of environmental issues, but also helping them and our community to develop lifestyles which will ensure the wellbeing of our planet; our home.

READERS' COMMENTS

MORE FROM ARABIANBUSINESS.COM