22.04.2024.
To mark Earth Day, more than 150 contest entries by primary and secondary school students delivered a strong message about the importance of fighting fast fashion and its negative impacts on the environment.Winners of the educational and ecological competition of the Fund - Modna lasta were revealed on modnalasta.com to mark Earth Day. Inspirational students' works are full of creative ideas each of us can take up thus contributing to protecting the diversity of our environment that is facing the danger of destruction primarily due to consumerism and fast fashion, which was the focus of this year's creative competition. In the three tasks divided into categories for lower and higher elementary school grades and high school, creative students showed how we can slow down fast fashion and help our planet.
An expert jury consisting of representatives of the largest Croatian media companies, influencer Mateja Frajsberger aka Click4chic, and representatives of the Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency Fund, selected three of the most creative works in each category. The first place in the lower grades category went to Petra Atelj, Rut Fekeža, Paula Majstorović, Iris Tomljenović and Korina Židak from Vjenceslav Novak Zagreb Elementary School, under the mentorship of class teacher Bojana Habjanec, while in the category of higher grades the winner was Viktorija Huljina from Banija Elementary School, mentored by Ankica Veseljić. The winning team in the secondary school category consisted of Dora Modrić, Jakov Grabar, Elizabeta Kasun, Vita Breški and Karla Kolenko from the First Grammar Shcool Varaždin, who were supported in the creative process by teacher Ivana Žnidarić Kajić.
"We are exceptionally happy about the great response to this year's Modna lasta competition. More than 150 entries prove students' passion and commitment when it comes to preserving the environment. This inspires and encourages us to give children and the young the opportunity to show their creativity and care for our planet and reward them for their efforts. This year's winners are genuine indicators of environmental awareness of younger generations, and we firmly believe that they need to be motivated to continue their development in this direction", said Sunčana Matić from the Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency Fund.
Bojana Habjanec, the mentor and class teacher of the winning 4.b class group, commented on the 1st place in the lower elementary grade category: “I’m delighted that our 4.b art group pupils recognised the importance of environmental protection and through their creativity they managed to send a strong message about the importance of fighting fast fashion and its negative impacts on our planet. This award is not only a recognition of their efforts; it also confirms that the young have the power and ability to bring about positive changes in the world around them. I’m proud of their commitment and I hope this prize will be an inspiration for further research and engaged action in preserving our environment.”
The aim of this edu-eco competition was to educate and inspire children and young people to adopt sustainable habits for the preservation of Earth and it again confirmed how important it is to motivate them to act regarding environmental protection.
"The number of applications and creative solutions of Croatian schoolchildren evinces their interest in environmental topics, and I am pleased that I had the honour of being part of the jury that evaluated the most creative entries. I believe that each of us can adopt one sustainable habit that benefits not only society but the planet, and at the same time we give a good example to young people who learn from us," said Matea Frajsberger, influencer and jury member.
