Recife (Brazil). In a context of growing concern about climate change, the 1st and 2nd year students of Saint Mary Mazzarello Secondary School in Recife, of Mary Help of Christians Province (BRE), implemented an innovative urban sustainability project designed by their geography teacher, Prof. Ary Junior.
The project aims to create solutions that promote urban sustainability and improve people’s quality of life by mitigating the effects of El Niño, the pronounced warming of the surface waters of the equatorial Pacific Ocean leading to very heavy rainfall, with extreme weather events, on the western coast of South America, and “islands of heat”, the microclimatic phenomenon that involves a rise in temperatures in urban areas, where green areas are replaced by concrete, paving, and asphalt.
Coordinated by their teacher and by the Past Pupils of the Mazzarello School, Lucas Sobral and Yasmim Araújo, the students went beyond theory, applying in practice concepts of geography, biology, and urban planning, and covering some surfaces on top of buildings with lawn and small plants.
The “green roofs” not only beautify the urban landscape, but act as thermal regulators, reducing the internal temperature of buildings and consequently electricity consumption.
Built with the support of the entire school community, they bring many benefits to the urban environment, such as improving air quality and rainwater retention, helping to prevent flooding. The initiative also represents a significant step forward in the fight against the island of heat, a problem that affects the thermal comfort and health of residents of large urban centers such as Recife.
The project not only strengthened young people in scholastic learning, but also involved them in finding solutions to real problems, awakening in them a sense of environmental responsibility and making them protagonists in active citizenship. It is therefore an example of how education can be a powerful agent of social transformation.
Initiatives such as this, which combine theory and practice, demonstrate that innovative solutions can be found to the climate and urban challenges of the 21st century, encouraging new generations to rethink how they interact with the environment.
The work of Prof. Ary Junior and students of Saint Mary Mazzarello School is distinguished not only for its impact, but above all for the promise of a greener and more sustainable future for Recife.
On 29 August 2024, TV Globo, a very popular television station in Brazil, highlighted the project by dedicating a report with interviews with the young people.
“Nonetheless, every little bit helps, and avoiding an increase of a tenth of a degree in the global temperature would already suffice to alleviate some suffering for many people. Yet what is important is something less quantitative: the need to realize that there are no lasting changes without cultural changes, without a maturing of lifestyles and convictions within societies, and there are no cultural changes without personal changes” (Pope Francis, Laudate Deum, 70).
É inspirador ver as ações desenvolvidas nas escolas que promovem a sustentabilidade do planeta. Iniciativas como a redução do consumo de energia, o incentivo à reciclagem, a criação de hortas escolares e o uso consciente de recursos naturais são passos importantes para formar cidadãos conscientes e comprometidos com o futuro. Essas ações não apenas contribuem para a preservação ambiental, mas também educam as novas gerações sobre a importância de cuidar do meio ambiente, criando uma cultura de responsabilidade e respeito pelo nosso planeta. Parabéns pelo trabalho exemplar!