NUR-SULTAN – Some 1,400 people took part nationwide in the Education for Sustainable Development Marathon from Sept. 20 – Oct.17, which was launched by UNESCO Cluster Office in Almaty, Kazakhstan Federation of Clubs for UNESCO, and Kazakhstan Association of Regional Environmental Initiatives ECOJER.
Marathon participants shared their daily activities on Instagram.
The marathon is in its second year with a mission to develop a new perspective on mental and physical health, healthy eating habits and sustainable lifestyles.
The organizers also plan to develop an educational app to promote healthy lifestyle and environmental awareness as part of the campaign.
For 30 days, the participants took part in webinars, training lectures and master classes dedicated to proper nutrition, conscious consumption, waste sorting at home and at work, and recycling.
They also performed practical tasks from expert mentors to consolidate the knowledge gained daily.
15-year Ilya Denisenko from Aktobe, who studies at the City Art Lyceum, said that the marathon was quite an exciting journey although he faced some challenges with the daily tasks. He created videos about his activities and shared his achievements with mentors after school.
“I learned a lot. It was interesting and useful to learn about the environment and nutrition. And I’m pretty sure that I will follow this healthy lifestyle,” Denisenko said.
The campaign has become a new source of information for many people. It also had an impact on participants like Assel Kairbayeva from Nur-Sultan. In an interview for this story Kairbayeva, a lawyer by occupation, said that she had been looking for instructional material about waste sorting and nanomaterials in waste.
“There were also seminars on healthy food guides, sports, and the environment. The mental health issues were also highlighted and I think it is an important thing to talk about. Classes were conducted by well-known influencers and public figures. The complex ideas were easy to understand. It was something I really needed in this period of my life. I will definitely continue to adopt more sustainable ways of living,” she said.
