- The educational project already involves 13 schools from Santa Cruz de Tenerife and La Laguna
- 2,128 schoolchildren have received training, with nearly 200 becoming awareness-raising agents
Fundación Ataretaco is responsible for implementing the project, which aims to raise awareness among elementary school students to get involved in finding a solution to the problems caused by waste generation, specifically by showing them the importance of properly managing used domestic oil. It also aims to create a network of students committed to caring for the environment through the figure of the awareness-raising agent.
This morning, a visit to Acaymo Elementary School (one of the participating centers in the municipality of La Laguna) took place by the Waste Director of Cabildo de Tenerife, Alejandro Molowny; the head of Fundación Moeve in the Canary Islands, Belén Machado; the Councilors for the Environment and Education of the La Laguna City Council, Domingo Galván and Sergio Eiroa, respectively; and the president of Fundación Ataretaco, Pedro Armas.
Alejandro Molowny thanked Fundación Moeve for its support in “carrying out this campaign that is helping us to implement habits in the proper management of waste from an early age. We started in Santa Cruz and now we have expanded it to La Laguna with the aim of reaching a greater number of young people from the school community.”
On her part, Belén Machado emphasized the positive impact of the campaign in terms of education and social transformation: "This project not only promotes recycling, but also turns students into protagonists of the change. With the current support of the La Laguna City Council, added to that of the municipality of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, there are now 13 centers highly involved in this project. We want children to understand that every small action counts and that their role as awareness-raising agents is key to generating collective awareness."
Domingo Galván valued the incorporation of La Laguna into this campaign, highlighting that "it allows us to raise environmental awareness among children, making them protagonists of change and promoters of sustainable habits". He also highlighted the educational aspect of the project. "Proper management of household oil prevents impact on the environment and promotes a circular economy. With this training, the children can act as leaders within their homes."
Education, sustainability and inclusive employment
After a successful first edition in five schools in Santa Cruz de Tenerife (Santa Catalina de Siena FESD, Isabel La Católica, Tíncer, San Andrés and Bethencourt y Molina), which reached over a thousand students, the program has been expanded this year to include Julio Castillo Torroba Elementary School (El Tablero) and seven schools in La Laguna: La Verdellada, Acaymo, Narciso Brito, Cardonal I, Mainlop, Fernando III El Santo, and Punta de Hidalgo. So far, the campaign has trained a total of 2,128 students from 13 schools, with nearly 200 becoming awareness-raising agents.
The activities include training and awareness workshops for 4th and 5th grade students, the formation of groups of awareness-raising agents among students (79 in the previous edition, and 109 in the current one) and the provision of specific containers in each center for collecting used oil. The project also allows for the delivery of a funnel and explanatory brochures to facilitate collecting oil at home.
In addition to receiving training to extend informational talks among their colleagues, these awareness-raising agents are responsible for weekly supervision of the container placed in their school. And they also create materials such as posters and videos that explain the journey of a bottle of used oil from its collection to its recovery as biofuels or other products. Furthermore, they participate in regular meetings to monitor the project with the teaching staff.
And in addition to promoting sustainability, the initiative fosters inclusive and green employment by enabling the hiring of people in vulnerable situations through Fundación Ataretaco and its related companies.
With this educational action, Cabildo de Tenerife and Fundación Moeve are strengthening their commitment to environmental education, encouraging greater awareness and commitment to environmental issues from an early age.
