According to a leading market research company, YouGov MENA, in 2018, “Plastic pollution is not just a hazard to public health but also a severe threat to the oceans and marine life. Recent reports show that 8.3 billion tonnes of plastic was produced in the UAE alone last year. Despite the government’s widespread efforts to solve this problem, there is low awareness among the masses.” The Sustainability & CSR student club at SP Jain School of Global Management’s Dubai campus initiated an anti-plastic drive on November 5, 2019, generating awareness and encouraging students, staff and the academic community to Reduce, Reuse and Recycle plastic – the 3 Rs of plastic usage.
“The concept of reduce and reuse seems to be popular to combat excessive plastic waste. By the end of December, we already collected over 400 plastic bottles and counting, which we are repurposing for art, and stationery products for students/school use, and donating to local NGOs who will convert them into t-shirts and shoes. The drive is ongoing and will continue efforts in 2020,” shared Bhavish Adwani, President of the CSR & Sustainability Club (Meraki), who is pursuing his sophomore year at SP Jain’s Dubai campus.
“We have a passionate group of students who are keen to make a difference to our society. As we are part of a tri-city model, we are keen to instil social responsibility and responsible leaders of tomorrow. Currently, our student sustainability club is working on how students and the academic community can effectively help reduce single-use plastic to protect the environment,” said Megna Kalvani, Senior Manager, Global Learning & Student Life, SP Jain.
In the same spirit, our final year Bachelor of Business Communication (BBC) students conducted an event on sustainability called ‘Synchrony – Communicate with Mama Earth’ on November 21, 2019, where they invited a panel of speakers from the industry, hosted art of waste competitions and essay-writing competitions. Here are a few event highlights.