I hear and I may forget. I see and I may remember. But, when I do, I shall understand. The children of today are the leaders of tomorrow. If the eco-conservation habits are inculcated in their young minds they will carry the same to their youth. Keeping this in mind and in order to raise public awareness about rising Air – Pollution levels in the UAE,  the 7^th of January saw, in collaboration with Bee?ah, the ?Solution to Pollution? campaign comprising of a creative walkathon and two competitive events in the vicinity of Al Noor Mosque, Sharjah.

The WRAPS [Walk to Reduce Air-pollution silently] was the first of its kind in the region, with over 150 participants from all around the country, majorly children. The eco-warriors walked silently, elucidating their innovative Solution to Pollution through their creative and powerful, attention grabbing placards. Early in the morning, the passersby, joggers, car drivers, worshipers and anyone who we crossed paths with, happened to stop and look at the parade of change-makers. Contrary to the conventional methods of shouting out slogans to grab attention, a silent campaign created a larger, unprecedented impact, supported by the black clothes and face masks that all participants were in to highlight the menace of air pollution.

The Solution to Pollution campaign also saw an E-Waste collection campaign [covered in my earlier reports] ,dubbed as e-cyclethon, seeing over 100 participants. The e-waste collection comprised of Computers and peripherals, Mobile phones, Ceiling Fans, Microwaves, Transformers, Printers, Water dispensers, Wires, Batteries and what not. In a nutshell, we saved and diverted more than 140,794 Kgs of CO₂ Emissions, a whooping amount of saving out of a single event collection. All this was duly taken away by Bee?ah?s Tandeef workers to their recycling yards, thus diverting it from landfills. Another primary purpose of this event was to raise awareness about the e-waste bin provided by Bee?ah and about depositing e-waste at this designated place, henceforth outside of the Al Noor Mosque in Sharjah.

One participant Ms. Diya Thakur came dressed like a placard. She demonstrated how people will walk with oxygen mask attached in future if Air-Pollution is not checked now. some interesting captions were ?Plant a tree & Get Air Free?, ?Solution to Pollution is Green Revolution?, ?Be Carbon Negative?

The placards were also adjudged on the basis of artistic appeal, relevance to theme and overall creativity, sub-divided into two age categories. The judges truly had a tough time deciding upon the winners from an array of bursting enviro-innovation.

The Top collectors of the E-cyclethon (Based on amount of CO₂ e diverted) as well as the most creative and conceptually sound placards, were awarded as an encouragement to all. 

The Environmental In-Charge of Delhi Private School, Sharjah, Mrs. Anjum Hasan stated to the young participants, ?Let?s kill it before it kills us! Air Pollution is truly a silent killer.?

Mr. Fernando the Beeah representative was amazed by the e-waste collection and the creativity of the young students for designing innovative placards. He also commented that ?The silent walk WRAPS, [Walk to Reduce Air-pollution silently] is the one I have never seen before. Over 100 students holding placards walking silently spreading awareness to curb Air-Pollution has created indelible impression over my mind.?

Air pollution can be significantly reduced by using public transport & using electric & hybrid cars. Here in UAE the authorities are very active in Eco-conservation. They organize many events, coming up on 05-Feb-17 is car free day by Dubai Municipality. Many electric charging stations are provided for the same in Dubai. Many hybrid taxis are available in Dubai.

Air-Pollution is affecting over 80% of the people living in urban areas. Global urban air pollution levels increased by 8%, despite improvements in some regions. As per WHO updates [http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2016/air-pollution-rising/en/]. If not checked now it?ll make our survival difficult.

I would like to encourage all readers to come up and partake, lead events such as these to innovatively fight the menaces that plague our society today, and lead us towards achieving the Clean Green Dream.