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Taranaki Regional Council Chairman David MacLeod with essay winners, from left, Hamish Till, Jared Quinnell, Hazel Swanson and Penny-Lynne Siebert. Absent from the presentation was Abbie Fowler.

Taranaki Regional Council media release
22 April 2008
For immediate release
Photograph attached

YOUNG, GIFTED AND GREEN

Three Taranaki teenagers will be flying the region’s flag at a national Youth Environment Forum next week.

Hazel Swanson, 16, and Penny-Lynne Siebert, 16, both students at New Plymouth Girls’ High School, and Abbie Fowler, 17, of Inglewood High School, will be among 45 young people at the week-long Wellington forum hosted by the Ministry for the Environment and the Sir Peter Blake Trust.

The trio were chosen in an essay contest run by the Taranaki Regional Council, which also awarded prizes of $200 worth of educational material to two runners-up, Hamish Till, 17, a student at Francis Douglas Memorial College, and Jared Quinnell, 17, of Hawera High School.

The winners and runners-up were announced on Monday by the Taranaki Regional Council Chairman, David MacLeod.

“This is the fifth time we’ve run an essay contest to select delegates to the Youth Environment Forum, and this year the standard of entries was particularly high,” says Mr MacLeod.

“At a time when environmental issues are very much to the fore, it is encouraging to see young people taking such a positive interest, especially when they are faced with many other priorities and distractions. We can be assured Taranaki’s future will be in good, environmentally sound hands.”

The set topic in the essay contest was key environmental issues facing Taranaki in the next decade, why they are important and what can be done to protect the environment

Hazel focused on coastal erosion, Abbie and Penny-Lynne wrote about nitrogen fertilisers and leaching, Hamish discussed issues surrounding water quality and Jared’s essay was on the Patea freezing works.

The Wellington forum begins on Sunday (27 April) and runs until Thursday, 1 May.

Delegates will spend the week participating in community projects, voicing their opinion on environmental issues and learning first-hand about environmental management. They will also meet top decision-makers include Environment Minister Trevor Mallard.

“It’s a valuable opportunity for our potential young leaders to get-together with like-minded counterparts from all over New Zealand,” says Mr MacLeod. “I’m sure they will return brimming with ideas and enthusiasm.”

ENDS

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