‘Our Health, Our Planet’ Program Teaches Students About Sustainability

We all know it’s important to take care of our bodies, and we all know it’s important to take care of the earth – but how often do we think about how those two things are related?

This week, the Egyptian government began the second phase of its ‘Our Planet, Our Health’ initiative, an educational program aimed at promoting healthier lifestyles both for the public and the planet. This project engages participants in a variety of sports competitions and educational activities with the goal of fostering environmental stewardship across Egyptian society. Although the first stage of this project, instituted in 2022, engaged with Egyptians of multiple age groups, this phase solely focuses on promoting environmental awareness among university students.

The program recently kicked off at Assiut University in Upper Egypt, where 300 students from six universities gathered to compete in a three kilometre race. This was the first of many sporting events, whose winners will be rewarded with bicycles to promote sustainable means of transportation. Organisers will distribute 1,000 bicycles over the course of this program.

In addition to physical competitions, students will participate in activities that raise awareness about sustainable development, green job vacancies, climate change, climate technology, carbon footprints, and natural resource protection.

This event is a collaboration between Egypt’s Minister of Environment, the Supreme Council of Universities, the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, and Sanofi Egypt, a healthcare and pharmaceutical company. Students from 20 universities are expected to participate in the physical and educational activities included in this project.