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Hellenic Bank: Making the Primary Schools of Cyprus Greener

19/04/2022 10:01

As part of the International Day of Forests Hellenic Bank announces the completion of the “Programme for planting climbing plants on tall fences of primary schools”, a programme that started a year ago in a joint initiative with the Commissioner for the Environment and the Department of Forests, to upgrade the courtyards of 16 primary schools in all districts of Cyprus.

Hellenic Bank covered the costs of planting the climbing plants and installing the irrigation systems on the tall fences of 16 primary schools in all districts of Cyprus, making these schools not only greener, friendlier and more accessible, but also quieter, as the greenery also acts as a sound barrier, thereby investing on quality education for students. During the Programme more than 1535 climbing plants and trees were planted. It is worth noting that the action was successfully carried out with the active participation of the Hellenic Bank Volunteer Team during the plantings.

“The Hellenic Bank Volunteer Team embraced this initiative right from the start and their contribution was crucial to complete the action”, Mr George Christodoulides, Head of Human Resources stated.

Hellenic Bank has been involved in environmental issues for years, continuously investing in relevant initiatives and campaigns, as it recognises the interrelation between economic growth and the environment. Examples of this are Hellenic Bank’s inclusion in the Priceless Planet Coalition worldwide network, which aims to limit climate change and is committed to planting 100 million trees within the next five years, its staff’s significant volunteer work on environmental actions, such as the Let’s Do It Cyprus campaign, the shift towards e-statements in order to save paper and the support offered to Eco-Schools since 1998.

As the Commissioner for the Environment, Ms Klelia Vassiliou, noted "We continue our effort to make our schools greener in collaboration with the School Committees and with the Community Councils, because climate change must be addressed”. She also added that "The children embrace this effort with great love" and concluded that “I warmly thank all the participants and especially the Department of Forests whose contribution was essential in this whole process, to help us choose the right plants for each school, depending on the needs. I wish good luck to this wonderful team, the Volunteer Team of Hellenic Bank, which is capable of so many more new actions.”