Councillor Rhys Lewis, Rhondda Cynon Taf Council’s Cabinet Member for Education and the Welsh Language and Councillor Tina Leyshon, Rhondda Cynon Taf Council’s Cabinet Member for Corporate Services, Youth Participation and Climate Change attended the RCT Schools Green Carpet Eco Awards Ceremony on Monday, March 17, to award pupils on highlighting the impact of climate change by creating short films.
The Green Carpet Eco Celebration is a culmination of film projects from 4 schools across RCT, highlighting important climate change issues and what can be done to tackle them. The green carpet event was the premier of these films where the families watched them for the first time and received awards for their hard work and dedication to highlighting important climate change issues.
The schools that took part in the project were Williamstown Primary school, Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Evan James, Llanilltud Faerdref Primary and Coed-Y-Lan Primary. The films involve the pupils’ concerns about climate change, or the environment, and what can be done to change it, in an abstract form. The pupils, with the help of their parents and guardians, created their own material, which has been edited together by David Ozkoidi – Cinematographer to create short films with an important message.
The project was initially organised by Lyndsey Williams, RCT Schools Family Coordinator for Multiply, and led by Aleksandra Nikolajev Jones, Development and Fundraising, Artis Community Cymuned, Yma, who have both put a tremendous effort into the planning and co-ordination of the project, which was funded by UK Government scheme, Multiply.
Multiply is a UK Government initiative aimed at improving numeracy skills in adults, this project was allocated a share money to be used as part of family learning projects within schools. The project has shown how numeracy is used in film making and is supporting the RCT eco schools’ awards by basing the films on the following categories:
Biodiversity and nature
Waste and recycling
Energy and carbon management.
Councillor Rhys Lewis, Rhondda Cynon Taf Council’s Cabinet Member for Education and the Welsh Language, Said: “It’s been fantastic to celebrate all the hard work, effort, and creativity from our pupils, school staff, and of course, parents who have been engaged so incredibly throughout the duration of this project.
“Education extends far beyond the classroom, and projects like this allow students to apply their learning in meaningful, practical, and most importantly, fun ways – whilst also contributing to the Council’s wider conversations around climate responsibility and education.
“It’s clear that this project has been a fantastic way for you all to learn new skills and show just how creative you are - using such powerful stories. I know our teachers and staff have been working hard to deliver over 260 courses/workshops over the past 18 months and have worked with over 70 schools in RCT. This is truly commendable, and I thank you all for always finding new ways to make learning as interesting as possible.”
Councillor Tina Leyshon, Rhondda Cynon Taf Council’s Cabinet Member for Corporate Services, Youth Participation and Climate Change, Said: “I’d like to echo some of Councillor Lewis’ comments and thank all the pupils, staff and parents for their work alongside the Eco Filmmaking Project and for allowing us the opportunity to get involved and watch all your fantastic films.
“The films created teach us all a very important message— that taking care of our planet matters. Whether it’s recycling, litter picking, saving energy, or protecting nature – small actions make a big difference.
“By sharing these ideas, pupils are helping others learn how they can help too, and that is certainly something to be proud of!
“Well done to all involved and I hope this project inspires the pupils to maintain such a strong outlook on the responsibilities we hold as a community for a more sustainable future.”
View the videos together here.https://youtu.be/gdhn8s9V1bk
Posted on 21/03/2025