The Environment Club of Independent University, Bangladesh (IUB) organized a competition titled #Mytrashinmypocket to mark World Environment Day on Monday to raise awareness about keeping the surroundings clean.
A number of students from different schools, colleges and universities took part in the competition held on the IUB campus with their creative ideas, prototypes and presentations to find solutions to the plastic pollution problem, reads a press release issued on Wednesday.
The event was sponsored by the climate change and environment startup Envolead.
“With the hashtag, #Mytrashinmypocket, we want to make people aware of their responsibilities to protect the environment. The trash we generate should be with us until we find a bin to throw them into. But we never do that. We throw them in the streets. It is not just about plastic waste, it is about all kinds of trash,” said Mohona Jannatul Ferdous, a student of Environmental Science and Management at IUB and president of the IUB Environment Club.
There were three categories in the competition: prototype presentation, poster presentation and social media awareness.
The judges' panel comprised Md Abdul Quayyum, head of communications, UNDP; Tania Noor, innovation and sustainability advisor; and Rafayet Chowdhury, co-founder and president of the social enterprise Footsteps.
In the prototype category, Sinthia Shakhawat Mariam, a fifth-grader at DPS STS School Dhaka, won the first prize in the junior division. Team NCPSC Green, comprising Tabassum Islam and KR Rayan Nirjhor from Cantonment Public School and College Dhaka, won the first prize in the senior division.
In the poster presentation category, Team Re-Waste, comprising Sumaiya Akbar Richi, Shishir Das Partho and Mikail Bin Masum from University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB), won the top prize. In this category, Zaarin Jannah from South Point School Uttara, and Ishrak Fabi and Nazia Islam from IUB won the Honorary Mention.
In the social media awareness category, Ishrak Fabi and Nazia Islam from IUB, and Abu Raihan from Kabi Nazrul Government College, Dhaka won the top prize.
The event ended with a prize-giving ceremony held at the IUB auditorium in the afternoon. Each of the winners received Tk10,000 as prize money. The other participants were given crests and certificates.
Atif Md Safi, head of IUB's Division of Student Activities, and Morshedul Bari, CEO of the event sponsor Envolead, spoke at the program.
Artistry Wedding Photography was the photography partner of the event.
