Green Days for the local communities of Sharabia & Sahel Districts, Northern Cairo

The week of 18-25 April 2010 was marked by two new events organised under the aegis of COSPE’s “Northern Cairo” Project. On Wednesday the 21st and Friday the 23rd of April, the districts of Sharabia and Sahel, respectively, witnessed the culmination of two parallel environmental campaigns, the first events of this kind to be held in these parts of the city. In both districts, the pilot areas are characterised by a diffused status of environmental and social degradation, and the events were aimed at raising local communities’ awareness regarding environmental issues and their potential solutions through changes in people’s behaviour in dealing with solid waste disposal. As other activities under the “Northern Cairo” Project, both environmental campaigns entailed a previous preparation phase, during which the Project Field Promoters worked closely with the local committees created by the Project in each of the concerned districts. Different local actors were engaged throughout several meetings, according to the logic of community development and its long-term empowerment and sustainability. In the case of the Sahel environmental day, the targeted area covered the Elamiria and Elkodaee streets, and the main activities included cleaning the area, trimming the trees and painting the façade of the buildings. Alongside the successful work of the local committee in mobilising the citizens living in the affected area, the event was made possible thanks to the substantive support of the Sahel District Manager, local community organisations (Arab Society for Applied Arts Designers, Shriffe and Omniat Al-Kair NGOs, Mari Girgis Church), as well as the students from the Don Bosco Technical Institute. The environmental campaign in the Sharabia district focused on the area surrounding the Elmansoria and Alshahid Al-Tabaq Primary Schools, and consisted of the cleaning and initial upgrading of the Moubarak Garden, located next to the aforementioned schools. The local committee members received active support from teachers and volunteers from both schools, as well as enforcement from members of the local council participating as on-site observers. The garden cleansing was followed by further awareness actions involving an assessment exercise conducted by the Project Field Promoters. Questionnaires were distributed to the residents of the buildings contiguous to the garden, aimed at identifying potential ways for a stronger involvement of the local community. Both events were accompanied by an environmental seminar on solid waste management and the negative side effects associated with improper solid waste disposal. A significant common element of these events was the enthusiasm shown by the volunteers and the citizens from the interested areas, who worked side by side with workers from the “Ama Arab Environment Company” (AAEC) and the “Cairo Cleaning and Beautification Agency” (CCBA) in cleaning, sweeping and painting, changing the look of their surrounding environment.

See the photos here