The Green Flag award ceremony to the schools that have successfully completed three consecutive years in the "Eco Schools" Programme was held on June 12, 2023, at Paschalis Paschalides Hall at Hellenic Bank’s Head Office.

The "Eco Schools" programme is organized by the Non-Profit Organization CYMEPA in cooperation with the Ministry of Education, Sports and Youth and Hellenic Bank’s support, while the event was held under the auspices of the Environment Commissioner Maria Panayiotou.

This year, 59 Schools out of total of 251 participating schools of all grades were awarded the Green Flag of the "Eco Schools" Program. In detail, out of the 60 Secondary Schools, 7 schools were awarded, out of the 148 Primary schools, 35 were awarded and out of the 43 kindergartens, 17 were awarded. At the same time, 11 students and their teachers were awarded within the framework of the Net Zero for Youth NZ4Y pilot programme. The goal of NZ4Y is for young people to acquire the necessary knowledge so that, with measurable data, they can understand the effect of our actions on the environment, specifically in terms of energy consumption, water usage and other natural resources, as well as waste management.

The participants were welcomed on behalf of CYMEPA by Dr. Michalis Ierides, on behalf of Hellenic Bank by Mr. Andreas Papadopoulos, Head of Commercial Banking, and on behalf of the Ministry by Dr. Panayiota Mylona. The attendees had the pleasure of listening to songs by students of the Lions Kindergarten. Everyone expressed their warm support towards the Programme by congratulating all contributors.

The aim of the international programme "Eco Schools" is to raise awareness, educate and change the mindset of students in matters related to sustainability. Through participative processes in decision-making, planning and implementation of actions, schools become communities of sustainable coexistence at a pedagogical as well as a practical level.

Hellenic Bank recently completed 25 years of cooperation with the “Eco Schools" programme, making ecological awareness part of our education. Hellenic Bank's goal is to lead the transition to the Green Economy with the belief that a green investment is an investment for our future. Hellenic Bank stands by society with a comprehensive ESG programme, focused on strengthening our environmental culture and reducing our environmental impact. Priority is given to investing in sustainable practices and supporting initiatives and businesses that reduce the environmental footprint.