Dubai, May 10: It took nine-year-old Ruda Aswani two months of hard work knocking on neighbours’ doors to looking through trash bins in the locality, to come up with a decent contribution to the Emirates Environmental Group’s (EEG) Annual Can Collection drive.
Heaving his share of recyclable cans into a huge orange bin set on site, the student of The Indian High School, Dubai, said, “I ask my neighbours to give me their cans instead of throwing them away.”
Aswani’s mother Harsha said her son’s interest in environmental issues grew after his elder brother, Rudra, set an example. Rudra had begun his participation in the group’s activities about two years ago to fulfill his desire for a cleaner city. Both brothers are student members of the EEG and the family is actively involved in caring for the environment.
“We sort out our recyclable trash such as newspapers, plastics and cans. We collect them and drop them off at the recycling centre in Jumeirah every Saturday,” she said. There are many such cases in the UAE.
Abhirami Sasikant, an 11-year-old student at Our Own English High School, Dubai, dedicated her day off to deposit 500 grams of cans. “We should put in an effort to make our environment greener and cleaner,” she said.
The drive, held simultaneously across the seven emirates in 11 designated spots, saw individuals, educational institutes and corporate groups bring in bags to specified locations to be weighed and collected for recycling. One of the biggest contributors was Emirates Flight Catering, who had brought in about 767kg of empty soft drink cans in a truck.
The EEG had collected about 18,000kg of aluminum cans last year and set their goal to 20,000kg by the end of this year. “With the UAE having one of the highest global rates of domestic waste generation in the world, campaigns such as this are the need of the hour,” said Habiba Al Marashi, Chairperson of the Emirates Environmental Group.
RAKBANK joins mission
As part of their commitment to environmental well-being, RAKBANK recently participated in the Can Collection Drive organised by Emirates Environmental Group (EEG) in an effort to help reduce carbon emissions from raw aluminum production process.
A team of RAKBANK employees gathered on Saturday at Zabeel Park, to deliver the multitude of cans that were collected from the various Bank premises over the previous month.
“This is yet another step taken by the bank to demonstrate its commitment towards environment protection,” said Graham Honeybill, RAKBANK General Manager. “By participating in such recycling schemes, RAKBANK aims not only to reduce the negative impacts of the waste generated, but also to stimulate positive change in the mindset and behavior of its employees,” added Honeybill.
RAKBANK is also committed to reducing paper usage at the Bank by launching electronic bank statements for its customers, known as e-statements. RAKBANK also recycles the paper consumed at its back offices and plans to introduce this initiative all around Bank branches in the near future.
–Agencies