CYBERJAYA – The National Water Services Commission (SPAN) is turning to youths in its advocacy for water conservation and climate change awareness.
This shift from the older generation to the young is part of its strategy to ensure youths have a say in water issues, SPAN chairman Charles Santiago said.
The commission has launched its latest campaign, dubbed ‘WaterWise’, where youths can submit short videos for a competition.
The campaign is aimed at raising awareness on water security and sustainability, with SPAN urging all Malaysians, particularly school and university students, to play their part in protecting water as one of the nation’s most valuable resources.
“Normally, our focus would be on adults, but we want to change that strategy. In the face of issues like water pollution, our youths are the ones who will inherit our world.
“They (youths) should have a say in how water is managed and consumed as well as any water conservation efforts,” Santiago told a press conference after officiating the launch of the competition, here, today.
Open to three key categories, namely primary and secondary students, university students as well as youths aged between 18 to 30, the competition encourages participants to submit one-minute videos addressing various themes.
Some of the topics the videos can focus on include the impact of climate change on water resources, improper disposal of industrial waste into water sources and personal responsibility in water conservation measures.
For the first category on school students, SPAN is offering RM1,500 for the first place winner, followed by RM1,000 (second place) and RM500 (third place).
Meanwhile, university students who take part in the competition stand a chance to win RM3,000 for first place, RM2,000 (second place) and RM1,000 (third place).
Youths who don’t fall in the above categories also have the opportunity to take home a whopping RM5,000 if they win first place, followed by RM3,000 (second place) and RM1,500 (third place).
The competition is set to run until January 9, after which Santiago said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim is expected to attend the prize-giving ceremony, which will also include a dialogue session between Anwar and youths on water conservation issues.
Commenting on the ‘WaterWise’ campaign, Santiago said it will include various programmes with schools and engagements with students, with the commission set to rope in the help of non-governmental organisations and civil society movements.
“The entire notion and objective of the campaign is to put priority of water in the minds of all levels of society.
“Through our bottom-up approach focusing on educating students, we’re encouraging them to be involved in water issues and generate thoughts on how we can overcome potential problems in the future,” Santiago added.
For more details on the competition and the campaign, interested parties can visit SPAN’s official website at https://www.span.gov.my/ or the commission’s social media channels. – December 19, 2024