Organised by Dewa in cooperation with the Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA) and Dubai Educational Zone (DEZ), the conservation award this year contributed to saving 12 million kW in electricity and 102 million gallons of water.

Educational institutions, students and faculty members in Dubai saved 125GWh in electricity and 1.024 billion gallons of water since the inception of the Conservation Awards in 2005. Students in Dubai helped save power and water worth a whopping Dh90 million over the last decade. This contributed to reducing nearly 67,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions.

Prizes encouraged students to save energy and water in schools and homes. Various workshops and awareness campaigns on conservation of water and electricity were conducted to win prizes. The project manager, Conservation-Outreach and Engagement at Dewa, said this would enable schools to conduct consistent and comprehensive programmes for conservation.

The winners included 18 educational institutions. Six best conservation teams at various levels of education, and three winners of the home consumer?s category were also honoured. I would like to appreciate the concerned authorities for honouring green heroes for their deeds and encouraging others to follow the suite.

I think initiatives like these should be carried out at the global level for sustainable future for generations to come.

We all can only preserve Planet Earth by changing our lifestyle.

Consider the water footprint of your diet. 

To replace conventional incandescent bulbs with energy-saving LED or compact fluorescent lamps (CFL).

Setting air-conditioning?s temperature to 24 ?.

Turn off the water tap while brushing teeth.

Carryout maintenance of my air-conditioners twice a year.

Use a bucket instead of a water hose to wash my car.

Reduce shower time by 3 minutes.

Choose and use your appliances wisely.

Reduce the amount of water used to flush toilets by placing a bottle of water inside the WC?s tank / cistern.

To use solar water heaters, solar energy and natural light.

Make sure every tap in your home has a high efficiency faucet aerator.

Reduce usage of clothes dryer machine and take advantage of open air / sunlight for drying the clothes.

Be a friend to the environment. Make your pledge today to change your habits to save water and energy.