After being informed on the importance of the marine environment and the problems it faces, according to their answers, children between the ages of 6 and 13 showed particular sensitivity on environmental issues and wanted to play an active role in environmental protection.

Taking into account the children’s desire, HELMEPA proceeded with the creation of “HELMEPA Junior”, a voluntary environmental program for Primary Education schoolchildren, approved by the Ministry of Education and Religious Affairs. To date, approximately 123,500 children from 1,576 schools under the voluntary guidance of their 4,208 teachers have carried out 37,300 environmental activities across the country conveying environmental messages to their local communities.

The “HELMEPA Junior” Program of the current school year is titled “Our Friend, the Sea” and aims to highlight the interaction between people and the sea, enhance the knowledge of the educational community about the oceans and encourage them to play an active role in the global efforts to achieve Objective 14: “Life under the Sea” of the United Nations Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development.

Participation has already exceeded 305 teachers and 4,615 children from145 Primary Schools and Kindergartens, while there is still time to register on the program website https://helmepajunior.wordpress.com/, until the limit of 6,000 children is reached.

All of us in HELMEPA would like to wholeheartedly thank the volunteer teachers of the Program who have embraced it all these years, as well as the children for their sensitivity and efforts to protect the environment of Greece, filling us all with optimism for a brighter future!