Environmental measures to improve children's health - Health and ...

Schools8Country: TajikistanProject: Green schoolsOrganisation: Youth of the 21st CenturyRepresentative: Umidjon UlugovEmail: umed.ulugov@youth21.tjStudent environmentalmanagementcomes to the classroomConditions in schools in Tajikistan are not always as good asthey should be. Classrooms are often untidy and cold inwinter. But the Youth of the 21st Century organisation in18 schools in Dushanbe has changed all that in a project thatis fully self-sustaining. Little wonder it has won the politicalsupport of Tajik‘s education and environment ministries.Activities are organised with the support of Green Patrol,a youth movement with 16,000 members operating in70 schools. The project began by introducing an interactive,computer-based manual. The main themes in this "textbook"are the environment, healthy living, leadership and voluntaryactivity. In a collaborative process, it was decided that schoolsin the project would be rated allowing them to competeagainst each other.The students work individually on the contents and activitiesoutlined in the book. They then organise activities, such asclean-ups of classrooms and outdoor spaces, low-cost schoolheating, free distribution of boiled water, and the creationof posters to inform and decorate the classroom walls.The project has achieved a substantial reduction in diarrhoealdisease and although other health benefits have not beenformally measured, parents have thanked the project teamfor what they perceive as a reduction in cases of flu.The students are proud of their achievements and ofbecoming managers of their own environment. By sellingplastic and waste paper to local recycling companies, manyschools have created a fund to cover their costs. On average,each school has earned the equivalent of US$1,200.During 2010, another 100 schools are expected to join theproject. In addition, the interactive textbook will be featuredin a Ministry of Education report on informal education.School children have the chance to learn school andenvironmental management skills from the"interactive book" used in the Green Schools project inTajikistan.Fifth Ministerial Conference on Environment and Health, WHO European Region13