Nigeria’s Sterling One Foundation has won the first-ever ECOSEA Award for Most Outstanding Foundation in Environmental Sustainability.
The award was presented at the Environmental Sustainability Conference, Expo, and Awards (ECOSEA) event, hosted by Brand Communicator and Impact Report Africa.
The event, which brought together public and private sector stakeholders in the environmental sustainability space, as well as development agencies, aimed to develop solutions tailored to address some of the challenges peculiar to Africa, with an emphasis on Nigeria.
The Sterling One Foundation was recognized for designing grassroots interventions that leave a positive environmental footprint.
The foundation’s contributions towards recycling and better waste management in a bid to build a sustainable environment were also highlighted.
The CEO of Sterling One Foundation, Olapeju Ibekwe, shared her thoughts on steps to reduce the emission of greenhouse gases, highlighting that the foundation’s partner institution, Sterling Bank, is set to launch Africa’s first fully solarized building by a financial institution.
The foundation’s achievements were also brought to the fore, including the adoption of four beaches in Lagos where plastic recycling is being implemented with the help of community volunteers, and capacity building for youths to help them tap into the potentials of the circular economy.
In her remarks to the press, Mrs. Olapeju shared that the Sterling One Foundation has a vision to plant 200 million trees before 2030 with its partners and plans to start by planting 10,000 economic trees across the 6 geopolitical zones in partnership with the Unity Schools Alumni in 2023.
“We will establish tree planting clubs in partnership with the school’s alumni association to groom students who will not only plant these trees but support nurseries to birth more trees for other schools,” she said.
The ECOSEA award recognizes the Sterling One Foundation’s efforts in combating climate change in Nigeria and promoting environmental sustainability. The event was in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) such as Goal 7 – Affordable and Clean Energy; Goal 11 – Sustainable Cities and Communities; Goal 14 – Life Below Water, among others.
