…as the Dawn Project celebrates prize winners at the recycle for sustainability competition.

By Chris Onuoha

The DAWN Project, an environmental conservation organization, has held its prize giving ceremony. The programme titled ‘recycle, renew and rebirth’ held last weekend in Lagos featured lecture series by experts who delivered speeches among other things, to chart way forward towards addressing climate challenges in the country.

The event with theme: “Recycle for Sustainability: Making a difference in our climate and our lives” also attracted some that participated through webinar and in-person presence of participated schools, environmental activists, policy makers, industry stakeholders in one space to dialogue and proffer solutions on the embattled environment pollution in the space, to creating harmony for a better existence between man and the ecosystem.

Speakers at the event include Professor Akin Abayomi, Lagos State Commissioner of Health; Desmond Majekodunmi, environmental activists and founder, LUFASI PARK; Kris Camponi, Head of PR, British High Commission, Lagos; Ben Lewellyn-Jones, British Deputy High Commissioner.

Others are Nwamaka Onyemelukwe Director, Public Affairs, Communication and Sustainability, Coca Cola Nigeria Limited; Lucy Onoriode Okeke, founder, Aqua-Pro Life foundation; and Stanley Evans MBE, Collaborator, DAWNProject.

Abayomi in his remark commended the project initiators to have deemed it wise to create a platform that deals with environmental issues in the society. He noted that the project is in tandem with the “One House Agenda” instituted by Lagos State government which speaks towards a holistically approach to human health. “We believe that as human beings we cannot be healthy when the environment and the food we eat are not healthy. If the environment is messed up, then we become stressed in a toxic environment,” he added.

“We would like to encourage the private sector and civil societies to key into the same mission and vision of the government for a healthier lifestyle of our citizens. Environmental toxicity and recycling are activities we really want to encourage in the communities and to promote a healthier environment and ultimately a healthier Lagos,” Abayomi said.

On her part, the convener and founder of the DAWN project, Dr. Pamella Ajayi, Director at Bridge Clinic said that the issue of cancer cases in the country is becoming increasingly alarming among young people. She noted that it is time to deal with it decisively.

Noting that smoke emission that comes from the transportation vehicles and especially, generators sets as the major cause of these challenges, she reiterated the need to minimize the emission to avoid further damages to people’s health.

“The pollution we talked about today is another aspect. Plastics do not decay or go anywhere beyond the earth. The plastics are broken down into pieces and swallowed by the fishes in the sea. People take this back from the fish they consume. The challenges are huge and that’s why we embark on projects like this to proffer solutions to the problem and also find a way of mitigating and managing the waste properly,” she added.

Desmond Majekodunmi in his contribution challenged the youths in the country to speak up and challenge the elders to address the climate situation that is slowly killing people, adding that the future belongs to them and they should not relent in querying and asking for what belongs to them. He also advises that everyone should be a participant in addressing the climate challenge, saying it is not too late to start.

“In order to bring the required change in the society, we have to live in harmony, love and peace with each other. We have to start recycling and to do what all other creatures of the earth are doing which is living in harmony with nature. We also have to renew our minds and start doing things right,” says Majekodunmi.

Nwamaka Onyemelukwe mentioned numerous challenges facing the society today through mismanagement of waste products. She reiterated the need to adopt new measures already in place on how to turn waste into wealth.

“We all have issues with environmental pollution. That is to say, as we consume every end product from factories, we contribute in one way or the other to pollute the environment. But again, the world has evolved. Innovation comes with consumer demands, and this has given rise to better convenience because as a consumer, we are always on the go and do require convenient packaging all time.

“This suffices to mean that the duty now falls on companies to package services in a particular way for people to feel safe. This led to an innovation on consumer packaging which we call ‘on the go pack’ or “one way packing,” she said.

However, according to her, the light plastic packaging solution brought about the consequences of the issue of environmental pollution that we are all facing today. That is where the food and beverage manufacturing companies have to intervene.

“In 2019, my company, the Coca Cola Company made a commitment and gave orders that we must collect 100 percent of every packaging we put in the market by the year 2020. That is where the sensitisation began, to educate people to separate reusable waste and make sure it does not go into the gutters and clog drainages which will eventually get to the sea. That, we did together with other value chains in the industry to ensure safety of the environment,” Onyemelukwe added.

Onyemelukwe maintained that over ten years, the company has maintained a world without waste initiative. According to her, it is a known fact that everybody’s waste is someone else’s raw material.

“Waste is actually valuable. We want people to start looking at all wastes in that direction, not just the PET bottles alone but every packaging in the trash bin can be another material for reuse. If we pay attention to that, we can make a fortune out of waste. Our young population should understand that recycling is the way to go and it is a lifestyle that we have to create which can give additional needs of fortune and revenue drive. We are trying to engage authorities on how to positively educate the populace on how to manage waste to avoid pollution,” she added.

Onyemelukwe also noted that the highest point of action should come from communities around us. “How can we participate? This is possible. It must start by a lifestyle and turn to a behavioral change. In a nutshell, if we are meant to choose, let’s choose glass over plastic in restaurants to reduce the waste pollution. But we choose plastics, let’s compress and drop at a designated compartment.”

The event also featured award ceremonies and prizes for schools, students and individuals who participated in the art fair, poetry and prose including fashion designs that were all themed towards environmental sustainability.

At the end of the session, prizes were given to the successful participant in the art and design competition. This is as the convener, Pamela Ajayi enjoined everyone to be environmentally conscious. She also encouraged the youths to participate in their competitions as a way of showing interest and concern towards a clean earth project.