Last week, twenty three second-year students from the Institute of Earth Systems took part in a training day on sustainability at the Għajn National Water Conservation Awareness Centre in Rabat. The students are reading for the B.Sc. (Hons) in Earth Systems and this training activity complemented course material, dealing with the essential issues of environmental sustainability and the management of water resources, delivered during their current year of studies. 

The Sustainability Training Day, organised under HSBC’s Water Programme, focused on the United Nations’ Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs) which address the global challenges we face in ensuring a better future. Through a programme of talks, group presentations and hands-on activities, the students examined the meaning of sustainability, at both the corporate and personal levels, and addressed the role of education for sustainable development particularly in relation to local water management issues.

In addition to the lectures, laboratory sessions and fieldwork both locally and abroad, which make up the B.Sc. (Hons) in Earth Systems programme, the Institute’s students are encouraged to participate in site visits, seminars and training events such as this one. Through these activities, students gain a better understanding of relevant environmental issues which they may then choose to explore further through their dissertation research during the third year of the degree course.