Environmental Education and Outreach

Eco-Clubs

Location: Mombasa, Likoni and the wider Coast Province
Timeline: Ongoing; started in 2002
Objectives: Building an environmentally-conscious generation; development of hands-on skills; demonstrating environmental best practice to the community. This project aims at involving youth in and out of school in environmental education and ecological conservation. Since its inception in 2002, the Eco-Club network has grown to include 50 primary and secondary schools and youth groups in the Mombasa, Kwale, Kinango, Kilifi and Kilindini districts. It works by interested teachers or students forming a group - usually an after-school club - under the management of a schoolteacher or youth worker as patron. Clubs pay a registration and annual fee to cover administrative costs and to fund initiatives. After registering, they receive a familiarisation visit from Eco-Ethics. We also organize several follow-up visits to check on progress and give talks on an environmental theme.

Eco-Clubs focus on the following areas in response to the environmental challenges common to the region, with its busy port city, slum districts and small-scale fishing villages:

Environmental degradation
Sustainable solid and liquid waste management
Climate change and atmospheric pollution
Food security and poverty alleviation
Water and sanitation
Health and safety
Biodiversity conservation
Responsible resource use and conservation

Clubs' activities are guided by the club patron and may be tied in to the school's curriculum. They include activities in the classroom as well as outdoor activities such as tree planting. In addition, Eco-Ethics' environmental education and outreach programme also organizes events throughout the year:

Eco-Forums

Our Eco-Forums bring together Eco-Club members from different schools to discuss an emerging environmental issue such as climate change or endangered species. The day might involve an environmental debate, talk or video show to raise environmental awareness and encourage action.

Pupils from Star of the Sea school
at Mwakamba Eco-Tourism.

Eco-Tours

Tours to some of Kenya's exciting and attractive ecological sites provide Eco-Club members with opportunities for learning, fun and interaction with nature. Some of the sites that we have visited include national parks, forests, beaches and historical monuments. Students and their teachers also get a chance to tour areas of environmental concern such as dumpsites, eroded valleys and pollution hotspots.

Eco-Schools and the Green Flag award

Each year, our organization, in partnership with the Kenya Organization for Environmental Education (KOEE) and the Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE) , assesses Eco-Clubs on their schools' green policies. Schools with good policies in place graduate as 'Eco-Schools' and are awarded a Green Flag, which is an international recognition that the school is environmentally-friendly. Having a green flag can help schools to access environmental grants and access networks.

Representatives of graduating schools Magongo Primary
and St Charles Secondary.

Training workshops and seminars We hold training workshops for Eco-Club patrons to equip them with information, skills and ideas for environmental solutions in their schools and communities.

Eco-Club patrons attend a sensitization workshop.

We have found that Eco-Clubs offer a platform for children to share ideas, concerns and insight about their environment. They also help to ensure participation of young people in national and global environmental management. Other benefits:

Some Eco-Clubs have prompted their schools to put an environmental policy in place and improve how they tackle problems such as waste management and water supply. 'Greening-up' campaigns have removed rubbish and changed the appearance of some schools completely.
Eco-Clubs are helping to raise a young generation who are more aware of than their elders of the environmental impacts of destructive fishing practices, deforestation and the burning of chemicals.
In addition, the project is spreading awareness among parents and community members of the value of their natural resources and the damaging impacts that some of their activities may be having.
Participating schools report benefits of greater networking and partnerships. Exchange visits allow schools to share ideas on environmental management. During joint discussions and events such as World Oceans Day, schools are able to exhibit some of their products and activities, which are replicated in other schools. Networking has even extended beyond Kenya: in 2008, Star of the Sea and Mkokoni primary schools were visited by King's School from Kwazulu Natal, South Africa under the sponsorship of Kenya Airways.

How to become an Eco-Club

It's easy to join the network of Eco-Clubs. Any primary school, secondary school or registered youth group is eligible. First, establish a club and patron (we can give you advice on this). Then you simply need to fill in a registration form, pay a registration fee of Ksh 500 and pay an annual subscription fee for the same amount every year thereafter.

What's involved?

Running an Eco-Club encompasses the following areas:

Mobilizing the support of the school's administration and other members of the staff
Recruiting club members
Developing a good leadership structure for the club
Formulating club activities in the school
Developing a long-term plan of activities for the school
Implementing your school's action plan
Taking part in activities organised by Eco-Ethics
Reporting club activities to the school staff, administration and Eco-Ethics

What are the benefits?

An initial familiarisation visit by Eco-Ethics
Invitation to Eco-Club events
Participation in World Oceans Day
A chance to compete for prizes in events such as the Inter-School Eco-Challenge
Training and support from Eco-Ethics for club patrons
Students improve their environmental education
Students are more engaged in environmental management at the school

How to apply

Come see us at:
Eco-Ethics International Union - Kenya Chapter
Shabir Manzil Plaza, off Mbaraki Road
PO Box 1462-80100
Mombasa, Kenya

Or call us on +254 (0)712 972163
Or email: ecoethicsiuk@gmail.com