On the fine evening of June 10, Ilk Okulu Catalköy opened their gates to the public to celebrate the end of the school year with a school festival which started at 6 pm and ended at 11 pm. Approximately 600 people from the village and surroundings came to attend the festival.

On the school grounds the pupils had erected stalls for the sale of food and drinks, for information and art work. There was the class which under the guidance of their most engaged teacher Dalman Zaifoglu, had taken part in the children conference for environment in April this year and who have continued their project of “I don’t use plastic bags’’. They also had erected a stall selling cotton bags which they had colorfully decorated with fruit prints.

Our friend Heinz Herbert who entertains the website Northcyprus Insidertips for German speaking tourists and residents, has taken some photos.

A short play was perfomed on the stage, called ‘’ I don’t use plastic bags’’

Some children were doing their shopping at a green grocers stall and when presented

with a plastic bag they insisted, that the purchase should be placed into their cotton bags which they had hanging over there shoulders. Another girl, acting as a television reporter, followed by a boy acting as camera man approached the group and questioned them one by one, why they insisted not to use the given plastic bags. The children gave all good reasons: protecting the environment, to avoid using plastic whenever possible, that bags swimming in the sea are a danger to turtles and finally, that they want to act for the environment and not only talk about it.   It was their teacher Dalman Zaifoglu who had inspired the class for that play.    

The sale of the hand-painted cotton bags will continue during the months of holidays in front of supermarkets!

By the way, the stationary shop Deniz Plaza has joined the children’s efforts and has started to sell shopping bags made from cotton.