by Communications Officer | Feb 9, 2024 | Uncategorized
The GEO-INF Rainwater Recovery Facility at St Aloysius College was inaugurated by Atlas Insurance this week. The installation, designed by Ing. Marco Cremona with the purpose of diverting rainwater from the roofs of school buildings directly to the water table contributes to the replenishment of groundwater levels.
The second installation of its kind sponsored by Atlas Insurance, the GEO-INF project has been financed through the Atlas Community Involvement Fund that was set up to provide a clear and transparent framework through which Atlas Insurance identifies and supports a wide range of community involvement projects.
The inauguration ceremony was attended by Atlas Insurance CEO Matthew von Brockdorff, Executive Director and Chair of the Atlas Insurance Community Involvement Committee Catherine Calleja, the Rector of St Aloysius College Fr Jimmy Bartolo sj, Daniela Mariani and Leo Busuttil, other members of the Atlas Insurance Community Involvement Committee, Ing. Cremona, teachers and students taking part in the EkoSkola programme.
Addressing the event, Catherine Calleja stated: “As a committee, considerable deliberation went into the selection of this project, which not only aligns with Sustainable Development Goal 6 – Clean Water and Sanitation, but is also being intentionally deployed within educational environments. We hope that it will thus contribute to the personal and educational development of students, moulding responsible, well-informed, and actively engaged citizens.”
The Rector of St Aloysius College, Fr Jimmy Bartolo, spoke about the environmental values upheld by the Catholic Church, adding that: “The GEO-INF project is another step in which we actively implement the goal of caring for our common home. It is actions like these, undertaken by civil society, that make a big difference in our country.” Invoking the College’s motto, Fr Bartolo encouraged the students to take small things seriously, paving the way for bigger accomplishments, to truly become men and women for others.
Fr Bartolo reiterated the College’s commitment to safeguarding our natural environment. “Since the year 2000, the school has successfully grown more than 20,000 trees and planted them in various places across the island,” he added.
Atlas Insurance is currently supporting the implementation of the GEO-INF technology in a third school, and works are currently underway to complete this project within the coming months.
by Communications Officer | Feb 9, 2024 | Uncategorized
As the St Aloysius Sports Complex project is approaching the end later on this year, a short but significant ceremony was held at the Park tal-Majjistral organized jointly by St Aloysius College and the Vassallo Group in which a number of indigenous trees were planted. The two entities had committed themselves to this green initiative from the outset of the project after shifting some Ficus trees to make way for new sport facilities within the sports complex.
During a ceremony held on Monday 5 February, representatives from the two entities planted different types of trees namely 20 olive trees, 25 tamarisk, 10 tal-għargħar, 5 carob trees, 5 Oak Trees, 10 Almond Trees, 5 Judas Trees, 3 Nefel, 2 Deru , 5 Riħan, 2 fula tal-klieb, 2 fejġel, 6 alaternu u 10 tal-ħarir, 5 salvja selvaġġ.
Short speeches were delivered by St Aloysius College Rector, Fr Jimmy Bartolo sj, Vassallo Group CEO Pio Vassallo and Park tal-Majjistral Site Manager, Darren Saliba. Fr Bartolo spoke about the various environmental initiatives the college takes during the year, particularly through its involvement in EcoSkola.
“On occasions like this one we are reminded of our commitment to take good care of our ‘common house’. The church joins millions of people around the world who wish to take care of our natural environment,” Fr Jimmy Bartolo added.
He also explained that since the year 2000, the school grew and planted over 20,000 trees in various localities in Malta. He thanked Mr. David Azzopardi who worked on keeping this tree nursery alive and active throughout all these years.
“This is yet another step which confirms the Jesuit commitment to safeguard the environment,” he said.
The Jesuits, in collaboration with many friends and collaborators, managed to halt the building of a shooting range next to Mount St. Joseph retreat house in Mosta. “We have also, together with the °Front Kontra l’Golf Course° successfully halted a the development of a Golf Course in Rabat which threatened the livelihood of over 90 farmers in the area,” he added.
Pio Vassallo announced that the Mediterranean College of Sport to be set up within the St Aloysius College will not only include new trees and shrubs to be planted in different parts of the Complex, but will also benefit from other environmental measures that will help generate clean energy and make use of rainwater among other measures.
Established in 2008 the National Park extends along the coast from ir-Ramla tal-Mixquqa (Golden Bay) to Il-Prajjet (Anchor Bay) l/o Mellieħa. The Park is managed by a federation of non-governmental organisations carrying out regeneration of the habitat with the aim of reviving areas abandoned over the years. To date, the federation has planted thousands of trees in different zones of the park and has removed tons of illegally dumped waste.
During the ceremony trees were planted by St Aloysius Primary School students as well Secondary School students who participate in the Eko Skola initiative, teachers as well as the Vassallo Group team involved in the MCS project.
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