Pulitzer Center Update July 12, 2024
Cameroon Students Demonstrate Talent at the Rainforest Students Festival
Country:
In March, the Rainforest Students Festival Cameroon made its debut with the theme "Committing to a Clean, Safe, and Sustainable Environment." The competition brought together four schools in the Yaounde region: Complexe Scolaire Les Pyramides, Success Vision Primary School, St. Joseph Foundation, and ABS.
These schools went head-to-head in various activities, such as a "match des incollables," traditional dances, Mr. and Miss Environment fashion shows, sketches, and more. The students showcased their creativity by delivering powerful messages about environmental protection and the fight against climate change. It was an event that highlighted the importance of preserving our planet for future generations.
Adrienne Engono Epse Moussang, a member of the Pulitzer Center's Rainforest Journalism Fund Congo Basin advisory committee, worked alongside authorities of a dozen schools in Yaounde to help them prepare for the event. She facilitated reading sessions to help students familiarize themselves with Pulitzer Center articles.
On the day of the competition's finals, Moussang presented her article "Sud Cameroun: sur les traces d'une exploitation clandestine de plus de 1000 hectares de forêt."
In addition to being the main judge in the competition, Congo Basin RJF grantee Gibrile Kenfack Tsabdo presented his article "Cameroon: Bamboo, an Alternative in the Fight Against Climate Change."
This is the first time an initiative of this kind has taken place at the primary-school level in Yaounde.
Initially, the activity involved around 10 primary schools, but only four made it to the finals on March 15, 2024, after elimination sessions.
Over 1,800 students and 64 teachers took part in the Rainforest Students Festival. These teachers, who played a key role in preparing their students to take part in the festival's activities, have expressed their wish to join the Congo Basin Teacher's Hub, which currently has 169 members, 126 of whom are active in a WhatsApp group where articles from the Pulitzer Center are shared.
A highlight of the day was the symbolic planting of several trees.
“We want to make sure our parents know how crucial it is to plant trees to help fight climate change and other natural disasters,” said Mfoula Israëla, a sixth-grade student at St. Joseph Foundation School.
School authorities and other observers expressed their wishes to see this event repeated in the coming years.
"I learned a lot today, and so did our kids. I really hope we can keep this going," the director of Success Vision school group said.
