Hellenic Bank: supporting Eco-School programme for over 20 years

Teachers from 50 eco-schools across the island have participated in a hybrid seminar and were updated on Cyprus’ progress in the UN’s 17 sustainable development goals.

An innovative hybrid (live and digital) seminar was organised recently by Cyprus Marine Environment Protection Association (Cymepa) for all schools participating in the programme Eco – Schools all over Cyprus, sponsored by the Hellenic Bank and under the auspices of the commissioner for the environment Klelia Vasiliou.

Andreas Papadopoulos from Hellenic Bank highlighted that the bank has supported the Eco Schools programme for more than 20 years and looks forward to further actions to protect the environment.

“Cyprus has a long way to go to achieve the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development goals and we will contribute as much as we can to meet our targets, as this will make our country more competitive and productive and of course environmentally friendly,” he said.

For his part, Kyriakos Siakallis from the environment commissioner’s office congratulated Hellenic Bank for the hospitality and the support for Eco Schools for 24 years.

“Hellenic Bank does not only support Eco Schools, since through its Corporate Social Responsibility, it supports a number of actions in all pillars of Sustainable Development (Economy – Environment – Society), contributing to the achievement of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals,” he said.

According to the UN Report, Cyprus ranks 40th among 165 countries with a score of 74.9 towards the sustainable goals.

Eco-Schools is the largest global sustainable schools programme – it starts in the classroom and expands to the community by engaging the next generation in action-based learning.

Through this programme, young people experience a sense of achievement at being able to have a say in the environmental management policies of their schools, ultimately steering them towards certification and the prestige which comes with being awarded a Green Flag.