28 May
2006 - Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates – A children’s
film and a poster to sway public opinion on environmental
protection were the winning entries in a campaign
aimed at saving coral reefs from rampant coastal
development. The winning entries were produced
by communication students from the Abu Dhabi Women’s
College (ADWC) for the Eco Challenge 2006, a WWF
UAE initiated project.
“The project’s goal is to boost
the effectiveness of conservation action in the
country by encouraging community participation
through educational institutes,” explained Razan
Al Mubarak, Managing Director of the Emirates
Wildlife Society, a local partner of WWF UAE.
“We aspire to promote an education
that also delivers an environmental education.”
The project introduced students
to topical environmental issues from which they
selected the subject: coastal: development vs.
coral reef protection. Consultations with various
stakeholders, including developers, environmentalists,
and marketing and media personalities, before
the students ultimately decided in support of
coral reef protection.
Campaign strategies developed
by the students were then evaluated by a panel
of experts carefully selected to cover both theoretical
and practical aspects of the subject. The children’s
film, We are coral reefs, sporting a jingle of
the same name, scored the highest, followed by
a poster that showed construction looming over
a coral graveyard and the slogan: Why are you
killing us?
“This has been a wonderful way
to expose students to issues in the UAE that affect
them directly,” commented Yasmine Zaki, a ADWC
journalism instructor. “It has created an awareness
that did not previously exist.”
Project Eco Challenge will continue
in the years ahead to engage youth in nature conservation
and to help future communication professionals
become environmentally-conscious citizens.
The Arabian Gulf and the Gulf
of Oman, both part of WWF's Global 200 Ecoregions,
have some ecosystems of biodiversity value associated
with them. These are islands, coral reefs, sea
grasses, intertidal areas, salt marshes, 'khors'
(tidal inlets) and mangroves.
END NOTES:
• The winning team members (2nd year communications
students at the Abu Dhabi Women’s College) were:
Fatema Al Muhairi, Salama Al Qubaisi and Shaikha
Al Obaidli. The second prize went to: Zainab Saleh,
Noura Al Zaabi, and Mariam Mohamed Al Ameri.
• Field trips organized for
the project Eco Challenge 2006 were along Dubai’s
coastline and to Al Sammaliyah Island off Abu
Dhabi. Environmentalists spoken to were representatives
of the Emirates Diving Association, Emirates Heritage
Club and the EWS-WWF. Developers consulted were
ALDAR Properties, while marketing and communication
specialists were from Ogilvy One and Ocean World
Productions.
