New Page 1

The plane touched down at the Jomo Kenyatta Airport, Nairobi. Our faces were illuminated with joy. Majestically, we were led to a car and driven to the hotel. Everyone, including our teachers who accompanied us, were bubbling with enthusiasm. The atmosphere around us was charged. The excitement was all about attending a children’s conference in some other country, while discussing our own environmental issues. It was truly amazing!

In fact, we felt that it was not just amazing but simply fantastic. Away from our parents and schools, it was a kind of a great break which all of us (children) desperately needed, but the task that lay ahead drew our entire attention towards it. The international conference on environment was our target and to do something unforgettable was our aim. We felt as if the people of our country bestowed upon us to carry their aspirations to this conference. Thus, everyone expected us to do everything perfectly.

The three-day environmental conference had an interesting topic for each day. The topic for discussion on Day One was ‘Wildlife in Danger’. The opening ceremony was one of its kind. There were various presentations (from Kenya, UK and Canada) in the first session of the conference, which also included ‘Michael Jackson’s Earth song’ and a speech by the Junior Board Chairperson, Ms. Mossioroo. The later half of the day was spent in the Nairobi National Park and Animal Orphanage. It was an exciting and fun-filled afternoon, looking at all the different animals.

On the Second Day , the topic for discussion was ‘Water and Recycling’. We spent the morning attending different workshops. The workshops included:

Each one of us had a once-in-a lifetime experience. We went back to the UNEP complex for the second session. There were presentations by Japan, Ireland and the Panchavati Group (from India) and each one of them talked about the recycling and reuse projects they had undertaken.

All the presentations were very informative and interesting. There was a brief discussion about the Millennium ICCE and voting for the International Junior Board for the ICC in 2000 A.D.

On the Third Day, we assembled at Gigiri for a short morning session where the shortcomings were discussed. After that, we were transported to our workshops which included ‘Geo-Youth’, ‘Information gathering at Kenya Television Network’ and ‘Environment role playing’.

After lunch, there was a speech by Mr. Pal Schmidit, who emphasised the relationship between sports and environment. Then came the presentations from Estonia and the United Kingdom. The presentation by a boy from UK was quite impressive. After a short break, the presentations from Malaysia, Canada and Chile took over. Next, the most awaited presentation came up. IT WAS OURS! We, the children from DEAN (Delhi Environment Action Network), India, ascended on the stage to perform our short street play, emphasising: believe that ‘together we can and we will save our Mother Nature’. The motto of this ICCE which is ‘Leave it to us’, proves it all.

The conference has taught us many things. Firstly, it inculcated in us a sense of responsibility towards the environment. It also made us aware about the actual intensity of the problems of endangered animals, the need for reducing wastes and to emphasize on recycling. The Conference provided us a chance to help find better solutions to the existing environmental problems. It provided us a unique opportunity to interact with children from all parts of the world and to know their viewpoint as well. The Conference created a challenge in all of us to do something for protecting our environment and to utilize the media properly for this purpose. The Conference also helped us find better alternatives in this regard. It was a thrilling and wonderful experience to be in a different country, a different atmosphere, to discuss and resolute. On the whole, it made us better world citizens and eco-friendly people. It is now that we feel TOGETHER WE CAN AND WE WILL SAVE OUR MOTHER NATURE. The motto of this Conference ‘Leave it to us’ proves it all.

At the end of each day, we were given Challenge Cards to write a challenge each, related to the day’s topic. The ICC challenges could be issued against children, people of the world, our government, governments of the world, UN or NGOs. Fortunately, the challenges the four of us proposed were accepted and adopted by the UN Charter of Challenges. Our challenges were something like this :

· I, Archana , challenged the children of the world to set up a small recycling project in their schools so that they start recycling from the school level itself.

· I, Chaitaniya, challenged the Governments of the World to ban and enforce the laws on poaching of marine life (plants and animals).

· I, Harita, issued a challenge that stated - "Government of the world should ban all animal products, irrespective of whether the animal is rare or not".

· Lastly, as members of the DEAN Team from India, we challenged ourselves to remember and meet these challenges when we become adults. q

A Glimpse of ICCE’98 through the eyes of DEAN teachers, who accompanied the students representing the Delhi Environment Action Network

The words; "of the children, by the children, for the children" aptly describe the International Children’s Conference on Environment held in Nairobi, Kenya, on November 23-25, 1998. Over 100 delegates from different countries like Canada, Japan, UK, Malaysia and India attended the conference. There were 400 children from Kenyan schools. The Indian delegation consisted of two groups, one sponsored by the Panchvati Group and the second by Development Alternatives. Both are NGOs working in India to save the environment. The group from Development Alternatives represented the Delhi Environment Action Network which is a part of the nation-wide programme called Community Led Environment Action Network (CLEAN). The children and escorts were selected from different Delhi Schools on the basis of a test and an interview.

Once the results were out, the Delhi Environment Action Network (DEAN) group met and prepared for the trip. There was a lot of excitement and a lot of queries. A considerable amount of leg-work, such as yellow fever shots, visa, tickets, had to be done. The week preceding our departure was really hectic. We had prepared a street play and some charts. Finally, we departed. Eager anticipation, happiness and curiosity were the dominant emotions amongst the children. Some of them were travelling abroad for the first time to participate in an International event. But the team had jelled together and a feeling of ‘one for all and all for one’ prevailed.

Day One

The theme was "Endangered species". Presentations were made on many endangered species in Kenya, Chile and Vancouver island and the various efforts of the different groups to save the animals. One of the suggestions which impressed me was that of a child urging the children to set aside a part of their pocket money to conserve the wild habitat. Secondly, many children had initiated local programmes around their homes or schools where they had protected or regenerated a nearby pond or marshy area. Later on, there was a trip to the Nairobi National Park where we saw zebras, lions, giraffes and a factory situated at the outskirts of the park, which was adversely affecting the wild-life. A lot of NGOs and citizens were urging the Kenyan government to shut down or shift the factory from that area. A decision is still awaited. We were told that the park, being in the vicinity of a city, was being affected by the air-pollution. Another problem faced by this park was that the local people were buying land and fencing it for their personal use. As a result of this, the migratory path of the animals from Nairobi to further interiors was affected. Legislation and effective enforcement of laws was a must in this region. This gave the delegates an insight into some of the problems faced by the people / the governments and the animals. Poaching too was discussed at a great length during the conference. The children’s challenge of asking themselves to refrain from buying leather goods or furs or animal products, I thought, was appropriate and called for.

Day Two

The second day’s theme was "solid waste disposal and recycling". Children were taken to a recycling plant where paper was being made from water hyacinth. Water hyacinth is a major problem as it flourishes on polluted waters, causing reduction in the dissolved oxygen content and, hence, affecting the survival of fish and other pond organisms. Another workshop was held at the "Kenyatta market", where children segregated plastic and other wastes form organics. The organic waste was sent for vermicomposting. Thirdly, a Japanese girl, Haruka, presented the paper scoop - an ingenious way of picking up pet dung and later sending it for

vermicomposting. She has set up an industry based on this very concept. Children, at the end of the day, resolved to have a recycling plant in their own school. There was also a proposal that environment-study should be made mandatory in all the schools.

Day Three

The third day’s theme was - Media and Environment. Workshops were conducted at the Kenya TV and Radio Station. The role of media in creating awareness amongst the people and exposing the wrong-doers was emphasised. The children resolved that, (through debates, plays, articles, TV programmes), they would try and raise consciousness in their schools and local communities. On the whole, the conference was inspiring and highly stimulating.

All this heavy debate was interspered with a lot of fun, making friends with people from other countries, exchanging ideas through sign-language, exchange of stamps, currencies, ‘bindis’, etc. We had an opportunity to see the different dances of Africa as well as the national museum. The dances were very exhilarating and they held us spellbound. It gave us a feeling of being one with nature and how one’s ancestors must have felt in the days of yore!! All in all, "a wonderful experience, a lifetime of memories and a lot of promises to keep". These words sum up our trip.

Projects that can be undertaken by the children / schools

1. Reduction of traffic around each school.

· Identifying the children coming in their own cars. Car pooling where possible.

· Children in the vicinity must walk or bike down. This should be made mandatory.

2. Traffic regulation and monitoring air pollution during peak hours at congested areas.

· Children from a school go to the nearest point.

· Try and regulate the traffic at junctions, monitor air pollution.

· Publish their results through TV or radio or distribute pamphlets or hoarding.

· Recycling of paper in their schools, vermicomposting for their gardens reusing plastic/cans/glass as a part of their environmental projects.

· Setting up an environment club in all schools and networking through DEAN so that individual projects are taken up and there is no overlap.

Community Level Projects

· Children can start raising consciousness in their immediate residential area.

· A "community mela" can be organised with the help of children/school and DEAN in that area.

· Four or five children of an area can get together and look after a park in their colony.

· They can urge the shop keeper in the local market to sponsor "maintenance of a tree" along the sides of roads or in a park.

· Arrange for separate bins for collection of garbage plastic/cans/glass separate from organic.

· Most residential areas have huge parks. A part of these parks can be set aside for composting. This activity can be initiated by the children in coordination with the resident community. Children only need to supervise this activity.