Call to Earth Day 2023: How students helped care for the planet

(CNN) — November 28 was the third annual Call to Earth Day, an initiative dedicated to sustainability and conservation. Partnering with individuals, schools and organizations across the globe, CNN aims to raise awareness of environmental issues and encourage education. Themed “Our Shared Home,” this year’s Call to Earth Day focuses on bridging the gap between humans and wildlife.

Over 200,000 participants, including 235 schools, took part this year. From making their own environmental awareness videos, to organizing and running a junkyard sale, students took the initiative to do their bit towards protecting the planet and inspire positive change.

Take a look below at a selection of activities undertaken by schools around the world.

Europe

Children from The International School of Krakow in Poland created an ECOllage with trash found in their local forest. “Our piece transformed unwanted waste into an original piece of art that showcases our students’ constant collective effort to make this world a better place,” reads their Facebook post.

And the Finnish School of Kosovo decided to turn trash into treasure for their Call to Earth Day project. After collecting waste glass jars, the students painted them to create upcycled artworks that spread awareness of the importance of reusing and recycling.

Middle East

Students from Makassed Islamic High School in Lebanon decided to participate in a number of different projects, from upcycling plastic bottle lids into a giant poster, to making compost from leftover food.

Africa

Pupils from Greenwood School, in Morocco, went to Bouskoura Forest armed with gloves and rubbish bags and collected trash.

In Nigeria, children from Corona School Ikoyi created an awareness video on sustainable living and upcycling. “The bad choices we make have a great impact on our shared home, our natural habitat,” said one student.

Asia

Creating a news report-style video for this year’s Call to Earth Day, students from CHIREC International School in India explored how to tackle water scarcity in the country’s farming districts.

The Mangrove and Gardening club at United World College in Thailand decided to mark the day by collecting mangrove seed pods for their school’s mangrove nursery. After nurturing the seeds in the nursery, they plan to plant the saplings at a coastal location.

Latin America

Fifth-grade students from the New Cambridge School in Colombia used this year’s Call to Earth Day to raise awareness of plastic pollution.

While innovative young students from Dualastair School in Chile found novel ways to recycle plastic waste.

North America

Students from Cornerstone Learning Community in Florida planted wiregrass on Call to Earth Day. Together, they planted over 700 seeds to help restore the native wiregrass ecosystem. The initial project started in late 2022, when students collected over 1 million seeds for germination and planting.

And all over the world, from Chile to Thailand, Cognita Schools took part in an artwork and video project. You can see just a small selection of their images in the gallery below.

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