The Ministry of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining is promoting energy conservation and efficiency among the nation’s youth through its annually staged Caribbean Community and Common Market (CARICOM) Energy Week School Tour.

State Minister, Hon. Julian Robinson, kicked off the week with a tour of Clan Carthy Primary School located on Deanery Road, Kingston, on November 9.

The tour is slated to run from November 9 to 13 and will continue with visits to several other institutions including Harbour View Primary, Jamaica College and St. Andrew High.

In an interview with JIS News, the State Minister said that this year’s initiative is part of the Ministry’s efforts to promote a culture of energy conservation and encourage the youth to contribute to alternative energy solutions for the country.

“The objective in going to the schools is to share ideas about energy conservation so that the students from (a young) age can start to practise these energy saving tips. They can use them (tips) at home, they can use them at school. So education and knowledge sharing is the main reason for the tour,” he said.

Mr. Robinson had an interactive session with 30 Clan Carthy students. The students, from grades four, five and six, had a number of questions and suggestions for the State Minister.

“They are a very bright set of students, they have a lot of questions and a lot of great ideas, so I would say that they know a lot more than we do…It shows that there is a lot of good thinking taking place…who knows, some of them may come up with their own solutions to how to generate electricity. I was very impressed by the questions that they had,” he said.

The Energy Week School Tour, under the theme: ‘Empowering Our Sustainable Development’, includes partnership with the Caribbean Maritime Institute (CMI) and University of Technology (UTech), among others.