Student Winners
Five students from Cayman Prep & High School were named as the winners of the Ministry of Health, Environment & Sustainability鈥檚 High School Climate & Energy Challenge. The winning students, Elena and Olivia Kish (who shared a prize), Logan McCoy, Harry Davis and Kupakwashe 鈥淜P鈥 Mutomba, all of whom are in Year 8, were invited to a prize giving event at the Government Administration Building along with their parents and teachers.
The high-school edition of the challenge is the third iteration of this educational initiative which was first launched in May 2024 for civil servants. A second edition was rolled out for the general public in September 2024, followed by the High School edition which ran from February to May 2025. This challenge was a product of close collaboration with the Ministry of Education and Department of Education Services.
The High School Climate & Energy Challenge aligned with science and geography objectives of the National Curriculum 2021 for Key Stage 3. Public and private schools across the Islands were invited to participate with the content shared directly to teachers to deliver during class time.
Students with Chief Officer Tamara Ebanks, Morgan Golden-Ebanks and Lisa Hurlston-McKenzie
The challenge, which ended on 23 May, provided students with a month鈥檚 worth of digital resources for daily learning about climate change and sustainable energy in the Cayman Islands. At the end of the month students took a quiz and those that scored eight points or more were entered into a draw to win exciting prizes.
Speaking at the prize-giving, Ministry of Health, Environment & Sustainability Chief Officer Tamara Ebanks, said: 鈥淓ngaging young people through creative initiatives like the High School Climate and Energy Challenge is vital to ensuring that climate literacy becomes embedded into the education of young people, their families and ultimately our society as a whole. I鈥檇 like to give a special thanks to our colleagues in the Ministry of Education and Department of Education Services for working closely with us on this initiative, as well as the teachers who delivered the challenge. Congratulations to our winners and their teachers, and I hope that we will see even more schools participate in the challenge next academic year.鈥
Students with Teachers and Mr Alleyne
The student winners remarked on how much they enjoyed the course content which comprised of a mix of videos, articles, and activities, and that taking part in the challenge had helped them to further understand climate change. Their teachers also praised the Ministry for sharing useful and creative resources that can be easily embedded into their classroom activities.
Year 8 student, Kupakwashe Mutomba, said: 鈥淭he videos were interesting and really easy to remember because they were about Cayman. I really enjoyed the experience in the Government building, and it was nice to meet the Head of the Sustainability Department, but my favourite part was getting the prizes!鈥
Lisa Hurlston-McKenzie, Senior Policy Advisor, said: 鈥淥ne of the objectives of the Climate Change Policy is education and outreach. By engaging with schools to apply localised and relevant resources, we are helping educators and students make tangible connections to the various ways that extreme weather and climate change impacts their lives now and in the future. We were particularly encouraged to see the parents so engaged in the topics and their teenagers鈥 learning, and this has provided us with exciting ideas for next year鈥檚 challenge.鈥
Anthony Alleyne, Senior School Improvement Officer for the Ministry of Education & Training, added: 鈥淚 want to thank all the students and teachers who took advantage of this opportunity to learn about these important issues. Education is one of the most effective tools that we have to help our young people understand and prepare for the changes the planet is experiencing.鈥
For more information on the Climate Change Policy and other resources, please visit www.gov.ky/sustainability/climatechangepolicy.
Learn more about the National Energy Policy and other resources at gov.ky/energy.