Various events held during festival to educate public to go green

21 July 2010 , By The Star

The cry to save Mother Earth was clearly heard during the Walk For Values Carnival here where more than 1,500 people stood together to preach and learn about environmental issues.

The carnival, which started with a marathon, was later followed with various dances, theatrical pieces, musical shows, coral speaking performances and various other acts which were all linked to environmental conservation.

One of the participants, SJKT Ladang Tebrau student, Mrityun Jayan, 10, said he had fun learning about the different ways of preserving nature.

“I learnt that it is not nice to blatantly throw rubbish on the streets and instead people should properly dispose off waste or recycle,” said the excited boy who had attended the carnival with a few of his friends.

Another participant, Johor Baru Breast Cancer Support Group vice president, Poh Luan Eng said highlighting environmental issues was a good way to make known the cause and effect of daily actions towards Mother Earth.

“I believe that taking care of our earth is important and everyone should do what they can to protect our planet,” she said adding that there were many new things that could be learnt at the carnival.

The carnival, which was conducted from 7am to 2pm, had over 22 booths and involved various governmental and non-governmental agencies, which provided information on conservation.

Sathya Sai Baba Central Council of Malaysia representative, R. Govindhan who organised the event, said the carnival’s main purpose was to promote good values and encourage green efforts in the community.

“We also launched a new book entitled ‘Roar With Values’ which has inspirational quotes from famous people to be handed out,” he said adding that the book could be a motivating factor for visitors.

Johor Baru MP Datuk Shahrir Samad, who launched the event also echoed Govindhan’s sentiments and said environmental conservation should be viewed seriously and should start at the grass root level.

“We have to work together to conserve and preserve our environment so that it can be shared with generations to come,” he said.