An environmental event was held at Secondary School No. 3 in the city of Jizzakh to mark the results of the national “Grow Your Garden” competition, which was held in Uzbekistan’s schools for the first time as part of the “Health Routes” education program. The competition was organized by Nestlé in partnership with the National Committee for Ecology and Climate Change and the Republican Education Center. It brought together more than 400 participants from across the country’s provinces. The centerpiece of the closing event was a tree-planting on the school grounds with students, teachers, parents and partners.
The “Grow Your Garden” competition aims to build environmental awareness among schoolchildren and foster respect for nature. Students worked with teachers to create eco-posters on how children and adults can look after the environment, and posted their work on the program’s website. Winners were chosen by a jury and by viewers, who could vote for the entries they liked.
“Environmental education for children is an important part of building a responsible society and preserving the country’s natural resources. It is no accident that Uzbekistan is paying more and more attention to this issue. It is not enough to tell the younger generation why nature must be protected; we also need to create conditions in which children can take part in environmental initiatives themselves and see the results of their actions. Projects such as ‘Grow Your Garden’ help develop environmental awareness from an early age and show that caring for the environment starts with the concrete actions of each person,” said Lola Rakhmanbaeva, press secretary and adviser on information policy to the chairman of the National Committee for Ecology and Climate Change.
The “Health Routes” program is being implemented in Uzbekistan as part of Nestlé’s global Nestlé for Healthier Kids initiative. It helps schoolchildren form healthy habits, learn the principles of balanced nutrition and develop a responsible attitude toward the environment. “Grow Your Garden” served as a practical extension of that work, giving students a chance to apply what they had learned.
In the competition, Grade 3 “A” at School No. 3 in Jizzakh took first place, Grade 3 “B” at the same school came second, and Grade 3 “A” at School No. 19 in Jizzakh was third. Laureates were also named, along with a winner of the Audience Choice Award, decided by audience vote. The winners received diplomas, commemorative gifts and saplings to plant on their school grounds.
“For Nestlé, caring for children’s health means taking a comprehensive approach to building healthy habits from an early age. It brings together knowledge of balanced nutrition, a healthy lifestyle and a responsible attitude toward the environment. These principles underpin the ‘Health Routes’ program. Through competitions such as ‘Grow Your Garden,’ we aim to make learning interesting for schoolchildren and to support teachers in their work. It is especially valuable to us that parents also joined in: together with schools, we can make care for health and nature a shared family topic,” said Sergey Lysyuk, general director of Nestlé in Uzbekistan.
After the awards, students, teachers, parents and guests planted 100 trees on the grounds of School No. 3. For the children, it was a chance to take part directly in greening the place where they study and spend their time.
