- The educational project, which will continue, has been carried out in five schools in Santa Cruz
The event took place at San Andrés Elementary School and was attended by the island director of Natural Environment, Pedro Millán; the head of fundación Moeve in the Canary Islands, Belén Machado; the president of the Ataretaco Foundation, Pedro Armas; and councilors Carlos Tarife and Gladys of León from the City Council of Santa Cruz de Tenerife.
Pedro Millán expressed his satisfaction with the initiative, describing it as "pioneering and instrumental in raising awareness and educating a thousand students from Santa Cruz on the importance of collecting used household oil to prevent pollution and transform it into a valuable resource. We aim to build a genuine network of engagement, and we're already working on the second edition, with the goal of reaching a dozen schools.
For her part, Belén Machado thanked "the commitment of the five participating schools" and gave special thanks to "the 79 sensitizing agents — students who played a crucial role by not only learning how to care for the environment but also becoming leaders within their schools, motivating and inspiring their peers to adopt new, impactful behaviors."
"They've been given a diploma today which is, in addition to a recognition, a badge that they're agents of change for a more sustainable future. I’m sure that what they’ve learned will also help inspire their families and neighbors", said the Moeve foundation's representative in the Canary Islands, while highlighting that the number of participating students and the amount of oil collected so far aren't just numbers, but a reflection of the positive, environmental and social impact of this project."
The first edition of the 'Separated Oil, Utilized Resource' project was implemented in the following educational centers: Colegio Santa Catalina de Siena FESD, CEIP Isabel La Católica, CEIP Tincer, CEIP San Andrés, and CEIP Bethencourt y Molina de Santa Cruz. A total of 1,013 students took part, successfully preventing 40 liters of used cooking oil from being poured down the drains. The project also aims to create inclusive, eco-friendly job opportunities by supporting the hiring of individuals facing social exclusion through the Ataretaco Foundation and its associated companies.
As part of these actions, awareness workshops have been carried out for 4th and 5th grade students, as well as the training of 'Sensitizing Agents' who have acted in their schools as environmental ambassadors, promoting sustainable practices related to the collection of used domestic oil.
As part of the project, each educational center received the necessary containers and funnels for oil collection. Moreover, different tasks of information, training, education and environmental awareness were carried out for students from the centers, on how to collect and why to recycle used cooking oil, and ongoing support and follow-up efforts were also made in collaboration with the teachers.
This educational action promotes commitment to sustainability and environmental education and its main objective is to raise awareness as well as sensitize students about the importance of proper waste management in general, and domestic oil in particular, for its subsequent valorization as biofuels and other products.
