Ministry of Environment secretary of state and spokesman Neth Pheaktra (left) said the distribution of climate change instruction pamphlets and banners to students would begin this week. ministry of education
Cambodian students from each of the Kingdom’s 14,905 schools will receive literature to better inform them of the perils of climate change.
Ministry of Environment secretary of state and spokesman Neth Pheaktra said the distribution of instruction pamphlets and banners would begin this week.
“The ministry’s first project is to publish 500 banners and 5,000 pamphlets for distribution at various schools in Cambodia,” Pheaktra told The Post.
Ministry of Education undersecretary of state Ton Sa Im said the material would contribute to children adapting more eco-friendly habits, to curb the effects of climate change.
“They will become leaders in the future, so it’s [imperative] they learn about balancing the eco-system, natural resource management, biodiversity conservation and sustainable living,” he said.
Inter-ministerial project
The campaign is an interministerial project with the Ministry of Environment’s Department of Knowledge and Environment Information and the Ministry of Education’s Curriculum Development Department with support from the National Council for Sustainable Development’s general secretariat.
Sa Im said she believes the material in the pamphlets would ‘deepen teachers’ knowledge and especially that of students” on the importance of having an environment free of rubbish, pollution and plastic waste.
Approximately 376,000 people die in Asean nations annually due to indoor pollution, while 149,000 people die each year because of outdoor pollution, according to the World Health Organisation.
Cambodian school curriculums already include “Earth and Ecology” as core subjects for students in Grades 7-12.
Pheaktra said he hoped additional education on climate change and the environment would be included in educational systems for state-run and informal schools in the future.
Each year, the Kingdom also encourages a nationwide “Clean School Contest” – meant to actively encourage students to reduce waste production and clean up their immediate surroundings.
About 65 per cent of Cambodians rely on agriculture for their livelihoods and are among the world’s most vulnerable nations to climate change. Its impact could potentially devastate the livelihoods of millions in the Kingdom.
USAID estimates that some seven million people in the Kingdom’s agriculture sector would be affected by climate change – with the economic impact reaching up to $1.5 billion by 2050.
“I believe the pamphlets and banners on climate change for primary schools will play as important a role as research into it, personal and community level contributions to reduce climate change,” Pheaktra said.
