BBNHS began an International Coastal Clean-up.

On Oct. 19, Bonuan Buquig National High School (BBNHS) won the World’s Best School Prize for Environmental Action. The Dagupan City school restored lost mangroves to reverse the environmental damage affecting its students.

The prize recognizes the importance of youth, students and schools that engage in global warming solutions. BBNHS bested other finalists like Green School Bali in Indonesia and the International School of Zug and Luzern in Switzerland.

G. L. David Memorial Integrated School in Balanga City, Bataan, was shortlisted for the World’s Best School Prize for Community Collaboration. Dunoon Grammar School in the United Kingdom won the award.

Malitbog National High School in Calinog, Iloilo, was shortlisted for the World’s Best School Prize for Supporting Healthy Lives. The award went to Curie Metropolitan High School in the United States.

The World’s Best School Prize for Innovation was awarded to Escuela Emilia Lascar in Chile. Project Shelter Wakadogo in Uganda won the World’s Best School Prize for Overcoming Adversity.

Prize money

To help its students and save the local environment, BBNHS mobilizes over a hundred volunteers and plants thousands of mangrove propagules annually.

The five World’s Best School Prizes honor schools everywhere for their pivotal part in producing the next generation of students and contributing to society’s progress. Each winning school will receive $50,000 to help sustain and improve its work and fortify its school and community.

BBNHS plans to use the prize money to build a nursery that could support about 50,000 mangrove seedlings yearly and fund research to improve their mangrove propagation and preservation.

Being only a meter above sea level, Dagupan is vulnerable to floods. In 2009, Typhoon “Pepeng” (international name: Pharma) left most of the city submerged, with fishponds, rice fields and other industries destroyed. The city government dredged rivers to minimize flooding.

However, the mangroves died off, too—the rivers were exposed to the sun’s direct heat and killed off aquatic life crucial to the ecosystem. With their primary food source gone, many students had to stop schooling to support their families.

To save the waterways, the school launched a mangrove planting program.

“The first thing we did was meet the entire team including the head teachers,” said teacher Lin Ventenilla. “Different ideas came in, and they said, ‘As we embark on this mangrove planting, we will also integrate into our specific learning areas how important the activity is.’ It must be connected with the students, their studies and their way of life.”

The school contacted the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to learn more about planting mangroves.

To help its students and save the local environment, BBNHS mobilizes over a hundred volunteers and plants thousands of mangrove propagules annually, building new homes for marine life.

Far-reaching effect

Today, the mangroves along the Longos riverbanks are almost restored and stable.

“It is indeed a much-needed project,” said Winston, a student at BBNHS. “It’s for myself, my family and all the people who depend on the waterways for our livelihood.”

“For 12 years, we’ve been doing this because of our love for nature,” said principal Renato Santillan. “Even if it is a small and simple endeavor, it has a far-reaching effect.”

Today, the mangroves along the Longos riverbanks are almost restored and stable. The fish stocks have since returned, and the waterways are clean.

“The Bakawan Mangrove Planting Project is not all about planting mangroves,” said a student named Ken. “It also covers coastal cleanup.”

In 2014, BBNHS began an international coastal cleanup. Volunteers collected garbage along Bonuan Beach. They segregated biodegradable and nonbiodegradable trash and upcycled plastics into plant pots and decor. The school also planted trees to rehabilitate a local dump site.Added Ventenilla, “We cannot prepare the future for our learners, but we can prepare them for the future. We want them to realize that their actions will also benefit the next generation after them.”

About 50,000 people worldwide voted for their favorite schools. Winners were chosen based on rigorous criteria by a judging academy involving distinguished leaders worldwide: academics, educators, NGOs, social entrepreneurs, government, civil society, and the private sector.

All 50 shortlisted schools across the five prizes will share their best practices through School Transformation tool kits, demonstrating their innovative approaches. The step-by-step methods will enable others to replicate their success and help upgrade education everywhere. Available on the new T4 Communities app launched at World Education Week.

Best practices

Teachers incorporating the importance of mangroves into their lessons.

The World’s Best School Prizes was launched this year by T4 Education, together with Accenture, American Express, Yayasan Hasanah, Templeton World Charity Foundation, and Lemann Foundation. It shares the best practices of schools that impact their learners’ lives, making a real difference in their neighborhoods.

Vikas Pota, founder of T4 Education and the World’s Best School Prizes, said: “It’s time for world leaders to sit up and listen to schools like Bonuan Buquig National High School in the Philippines. Far too many children will continue to be left behind in the wake of COVID unless governments take urgent action to tackle the education crisis.

“As a first step, they must turn to the knowledge and experience contained within our schools because those at the frontlines of education know better than anyone else the change we need to see. We founded the World’s Best School Prizes to surface the expertise of trailblazing schools from every corner of the globe so that leaders can learn from their incredible stories.”

Peter Lacy, Accenture global management committee member, said: “Congratulations to Bonuan Buquig National High School for winning the first-ever World’s Best School Prize for Environmental Action. Teachers everywhere will be inspired by the example of this outstanding Philippine school, whose inspirational work is lighting the way towards a better future.”

Madge Thomas, head of corporate sustainability at American Express, said, “I want to congratulate Bonuan Buquig National High School for this fantastic achievement. We are pleased to recognize students and educators taking action in schools to protect the environment and their futures. We are proud to support programs and partnerships like this to help build more climate resilient and equitable communities.”

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