2 weeks Ago By [email protected](KoreaTimes)
Children pose for a photo at a playground while participating in the Mercedes-Benz GREEN+Kids program in Seoul, Oct. 20. Courtesy of Mercedes-Benz Korea By Lee Min-hyung Mercedes-Benz Korea is intensifying its efforts to educate children about environmental protection, aiming to raise awareness of climate change amid increasing concerns, the automaker announced Wednesday.
The Mercedes-Benz GREEN+Kids program is aimed at helping children get a better grasp on green activities. The carmaker runs diverse hands-on education courses to help impart the seriousness of the climate crisis. More than 40,000 elementary school students have so far joined the program since its inception in 2021.
Those who take part in the program can also learn practical ways to protect the environment. This embodies the value of sustainability that Mercedes-Benz pursues. The carmaker hopes to fulfill its corporate social responsibility (CSR) by engaging in such socially beneficial acts.
The Mercedes-Benz CSR Committee, launched in 2014, is standing at the center of driving the program to fulfill the carmaker’s corporate social responsibility here. In October 2023, the program was designated as an excellent environmental education program by the Ministry of Environment. A total of 10,000 participants from over 400 institutions and elementary schools joined for this year’s environmental education program.
A group of 412 students was surveyed regarding three aspects of environmental literacy after completing the course: environmental knowledge, environmental sentiment and environmental actions. The results showed they improved awareness of environmental issues by 20 percent on average. The children also became more willing to take action after receiving the education, according to the carmaker’s survey.
The GREEN+Kids curriculum focuses on the theme of carbon neutrality and climate action. Experiential programs include building a carbon-neutral village model and planting carbon-reducing plants. The company also successfully hosted the GREEN+ Village environmental education camp.
A total of 450 elementary school students attended the camp under the key theme of “Reducing carbon: kids can do it too!” The purpose of the camp is to teach children and their parents practical climate actions they can carry out in their daily lives. The participants engaged in diverse activities, such as bringing empty plastic containers and creating tote bags from old shirts. Mercedes-Benz Korea carries out various social activities under its official slogan of the promise of Mercedes-Benz, aiming to contribute to the sustainable social growth of Korea from a long-term perspective.
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