Mapo Environmental School Opens to Foster 'Green Leaders'

Training Green Leaders for Elementary Students in Grades 4-6 through Environmental Education Field Trips in the Region

Field Trips to Key Environmental Facilities such as the Incineration Zero Store, Mapo Resource Recovery Facility, and Oil Storage Base

Safe and Beneficial Environmental Education Expected with Green Leaders and Teacher Guidance

"Welcome to the Mapo Environmental School, elementary Green Leaders. We opened this environmental school to learn and practice essential actions to protect the environment together with our students."

On the 9th, Park Gang-su, Mayor of Mapo District, warmly welcomed 21 elementary students gathered at the ‘Mapo Environmental School’ and announced the start of its first class.

Starting this year, Mapo District has newly created and operates the ‘Mapo Environmental School,’ an environmental education field trip program aimed at practicing carbon-neutral living.

On the 8th, the district established a permanent ‘Mapo Environmental School’ base in the education hall on the 4th floor of the district office, held a plaque ceremony, and awarded appointment certificates to Green Leaders (local residents) who will serve as guiding teachers until June 15.

The ‘Mapo Environmental School’ is initially conducted for local elementary students in grades 4 to 6. In April, applications were accepted by school, recruiting about 130 students from six classes to begin field trips in the first half of the year.

The recruited classes, following a set schedule, explore major local environmental facilities under the guidance of Green Leaders and teachers and experience various educational contents.

The field trip program of the Environmental School first visits the ‘Incineration Zero Store,’ the first municipal recycling intermediate processing center located in Mapo District Office Plaza, then proceeds through Course A or B until the afternoon.

Course A visits the Seoul Energy Dream Center, a self-sufficient energy building, and the Mapo Resource Recovery Facility, touring the resource recycling sites by eco-friendly electric bus. In the afternoon, they tour the Culture Storage Base, formerly operated as an oil storage base.

Course B explores the ecological wetland with an ecological guide, then visits Energyum, the promotional exhibition hall of Korea Midland Power’s Seoul Power Headquarters, where students visually learn about the 90-year history of Seoul Thermal Power Plant and the electricity generation process, and experience cutting-edge VR and media art firsthand.

On the 9th, 21 fourth-grade students from Sinseok Elementary School visited the Incineration Zero Store, participated in recycling separation activities, and then departed for the Seoul Energy Dream Center for the first class of the Mapo Environmental School.

One student who completed the field trip said, “It was really exciting to have an outdoor field trip experience after a long time, and the educational content was interesting, so I could learn about the environment in a fun way.”

The ‘Mapo Environmental School’ will be held 20 times in total, divided into the first and second halves of this year. From next year, the number of sessions will increase, and the target participants will expand from upper elementary students to lower grades, middle and high school students, and local residents.

Park Gang-su, Mayor of Mapo District, said, “Through the ‘Mapo Environmental School,’ I hope our children, the future leaders, develop a proper environmental awareness and take the opportunity to practice recycling separation and energy saving from an early age.” He added, “I believe your small actions will be the first step to saving our planet in crisis and creating a better environment.”

He continued, “We will do our best to change the life practices we have lived so far and to help acquire new perspectives and lifestyles for environmental preservation through the expansion of the Mapo Environmental School and the Incineration Zero Store.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.