Over 500-pledge boost to Brunei's bid for Race for Living Planet

THE Sayyidina Hussain Secondary School from Jerudong won the $500 My Dream Savings Account from Standard Chartered Bank for bringing in a total of 516 pledges to boost Brunei's status in SCB's 'Race for Living Planet', a collaborative effort from teachers, students and parents.

So far Brunei is in the lead and SCB Brunei in its efforts to sustain Brunei's position launched a contest on February 25 promising to award $500 for the first individual to submit 500 pledges to the cause. The second and third individuals to submit 500 pledges will receive $100 each. Also, $50 will be given to the first 10 individuals bringing in 50 pledges each.

"Teachers from Sekolah Menengah Sayyidina Hussain pooled in their efforts and used this opportunity to not only win the award for the school but also as a means of spreading awareness among students and their parents," said school teacher Mohammad Hasrul Aizan Hassan, who accepted the award on behalf of the school.

The school managed to accomplish this by educating the students about the environmental pledge, he said, adding that the students were later asked to take the education home to their parents who in turn made the pledges.

"We found this to be a great way to help spread the word about environmental concerns that affect all of us, young and old, in this day and age," he said.

The prize money will be used for various environmental projects at the school such as recycling bins, fixing water leaks to save water and forming an environmental club for the students.



"It is indeed very exciting for Brunei to be able to lead in such a significant race. We are all working hard to win this challenge and the US$500,000 for Brunei as it will not only benefit the country as a whole for our environmental projects but also put us in the spotlight for leading the way in such a vital and important cause for the planet," said Jennifer Kang, the head of Corporate Affairs.

Fifty countries are currently vetting for the top spot for the chance of winning $500,000 from the US$1 million contributed by SCB in partnership with the World Wild Fund for Nature (WWF). Brunei Darussalam is currently leading and the first prize of half million dollars will fund the winning country's environmental conservation projects and is part of Standard Chartered Bank's global commitment to the environment in the race, which is linked to the Greatest Race on Earth marathon series

The challenge involves each and every country that Standard Chartered operates in and the countries, from London to the Middle East are also pushing forward on this challenge to win the coveted US half million dollar prize money hence making Brunei's results extremely significant.

Once the top three countries have been identified, Standard Chartered will work with WWF to identify a shortlist of projects that require funding in those countries.

The Brunei Times