Eleven schools from Malta and Gozo have won a grant of €500 each for water conservation proposals they submitted as part of a nationwide competition held under the new Water Explorer programme coordinated in Malta by Eco-Schools programme of Nature Trust – FEE Malta. These funds have been financed by the HSBC Water Programme, the initiative’s partner in Malta.
The selected schools won the bid after demonstrating the water-saving potential of their proposals. The schools are St Nicholas College Rabat Primary, Gozo College Middle School, St Margaret College Kalkara Primary, St Benedict College Kirkop Secondary, Laura Vicuna School, Maria Regina College Mosta Secondary (Ex-Żokrija), Maria Regina College Secondary School (Ex-Lily of the Valley), St Clare College Pembroke Secondary, St Clare College San Ġwann Primary, Mater Boni Consilii School, and Wardija Resource Centre. The awards ceremony was held during the three-day FEE Fest held at Giovanni Curmi Higher Secondary School, Naxxar.

Water Explorer is a fun, action-oriented, international online programme that inspires thousands of students to become ‘water explorers’ and lead action in their school communities on water issues. It was launched in Malta in November 2017.
Managed by NGO Global Action Plan, the programme is being followed in France, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Spain, Turkey, Poland, South Africa and the UK. Participating schools are encouraged to link up with schools from other countries to share their ideas and top water-saving tips. The online resources are aligned to the United Nation’s SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) and ideal for 8-14 year olds but can freely be used by younger and older students.
In addition to the €500 grants for school projects, there are more prizes to be won by participating in the programme, including a prize for the best school of the month and the chance for representatives from the best school team in Malta to showcase their efforts during an international celebration event in October 2018. Other incentives and related events will be taking place in Malta throughout 2018. More details are available at www.waterexplorer.org/malta, on Facebook www.facebook.com/waterexplorermalta/ or by contacting project coordinator Marvic Refalo at marvic@naturetrustmalta.org