Ms Isabella Loh, Chairman of the Singapore Environment Council,
Mr Ho Tong Yen, Chief Executive Officer of Keppel Care Foundation,
Teachers, students, and award recipients,
Good Afternoon.
1. It is a pleasure to join all of you at this year's School Green Awards. I would like to thank the Singapore Environment Council for bringing together this very meaningful celebration of learning, creativity, and care for our environment.
2. The School Green Awards represents how education can be transformed from knowledge into action. It provides a platform where students not only learn about sustainability, but also embrace collaboration, leadership and community involvement.
Nurturing Environmental Sustainability in Our Students
3. Environmental sustainability is an integral part of our school curriculum. The Eco Stewardship Programme takes existing environmental efforts in schools to the next bound, nurturing our students to become Eco Stewards of tomorrow. Spanning primary to pre-university levels, the Eco Stewardship Programme strengthens environmental education through the 4 Cs – Curriculum, Campus infrastructure, institutional Culture and practices, and partnerships within the Community.
4. Our ambition is to nurture Eco Stewards of the next generation. We want students who think critically, act responsibly, and lead with heart. Today's award recipients demonstrate exactly these qualities, through their sustainability initiatives to create a greener and more sustainable Singapore.
5. Our award recipients reimagined how we use resources, how we interact with nature, and how we inspire others to protect our planet. These initiatives go beyond environmental education — they teach empathy, teamwork, and active citizenship.
6. Take, for example, Unity Primary School, which organised the Pang Sua Waterway clean-up initiative. Students collaborated with pre-school students and community partners to clean the waterway across 21 sessions, improving its biodiversity and demonstrating environmental stewardship in practice.
7. At Punggol Secondary School, the "Recycle Right!" Textile Campaign collected over 100 kilograms of textiles for recycling and upcycling. Students engaged Punggol residents to address common misconceptions about textile bins, building confidence in the recycling system, while nurturing sustainable habits within our communities.
8. Eunoia Junior College's hydroponics farm-to-table programme exemplifies innovation in action. Students adopted greener and more efficient farming methods, and supplied the produce to the canteen, staff and our community. I am sure the students can feel a sense of pride when they get to enjoy the vegetables they have grown with their own hands.
9. These initiatives teach students to lead with purpose. Whether they plan a recycling drive, cultivate an urban farm, or design a project that benefits the community, they are learning valuable real-world lessons in collaboration, adaptability, and, most importantly, in caring for one another and the environment. This goes a long way in helping us build a "We-First" nation.
Appreciation and Closing
10. To our teachers and school leaders, thank you for nurturing students who translate learning into environmental leadership. Your dedication cultivates a generation committed to building a greener and more sustainable Singapore. Please give a big round of applause to our teachers and school leaders.
11. To the Singapore Environment Council and your partners, thank you for bridging the gap between education and action. Your work ensures that learning extends beyond the classroom and becomes a lifelong habit. If our students are talking about greener practices at home, soon, their parents will be doing it too.
12. This work by the SEC, with the continuous support from the Keppel Care Foundation, is a good example of how school-community partnerships can contribute to meaningful causes, as part of the "We-First" society we want to build.
13. Congratulations to all our award recipients. You have demonstrated that leadership transcends age, and that young people can make a difference and create the future that we want to live in.
14. Let us continue building the sustainability movement together — in our schools, in our communities, and in the hearts of our youths.
15. Thank you.