Over 30 Young Reporters for the Environment (YRE) yesterday morning witnessed the release into the wild of two rehabilitated loggerhead turtles during the launch ceremony of the Litter Less Campaign at Golden Bay.

The event marked Malta’s official joining of the international Litter Less campaign through the YRE programme run by Nature Trust – FEE Malta.

Present for the ceremony was Vincent Attard - Nature Trust-FEE Malta Executive President and Jose Herrera – Minister for the Environment, Sustainable Development and Climate Change, who distributed a number of grants to the selected schools in order to complete their campaigns.

Workshop sessions about marine litter, the delicate sand dune ecosystems and the alignment of the campaign to the United Nations – SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) – were held on the sandy beach.

The Litter Less Campaign (http://www.yre.global/litter-less-campaign) is a joint initiative of the Wrigley Company Foundation and FEE (Foundation for Environmental Education) and is implemented in schools running the Eco- Schools, LEAF (Learning About Forests) and/or YRE programmes. The campaign aims to engage and educate young people on the issue of litter and encourage them to make positive choices. Young journalists are encouraged to carry out investigations on local environmental issues and report through investigative reporting and photojournalism. Participating schools will be able to network with students from the 10 participating countries and produce joint projects.

Schools can be assisted through in-house workshops to produce articles, videos and photos addressing key litter issues. They are also urged to organise a Community Action Day to reach out to the wider school community and to further promote their campaigns through local media.

Exhibits displaying the students’ work will be put up at St James Cavalier for viewing by the public during a month-long exhibition organised by Action Planet.

Apart from the funding received to complete their campaigns, local schools will also be competing with their international counterparts for international prizes.

The event was supported by Majjistral Nature and History Park, Gaia Foundation, Din l-Art Helwa, the Scout Association of Malta, WasteServ, Malta Tourism Authority, and Nectar Limited.