Abu Dhabi Urban Planning Council unveils its Estidama School programme developed in partnership with Aldar Academies

Abu Dhabi, Jan 17, 2013 (WAM) - The Abu Dhabi Urban Planning Council (UPC) and Aldar Academies are joining forces to educate the next generation on sustainability issues that are relevant to their daily lifestyles. The Estidama School Programme has been developed in partnership with the six schools that comprise Aldar Academies, specifically under the guidance of its Pearl Primary School, which played a key role in developing the purpose and content of the joint initiative. Aimed at creating thematic junior think-tanks, the programme will communicate and engage with children about the significance of sustainability, utilising the UPC's Estidama 4-pillar approach and its Complete Sustainable Communities (CSC) initiative. By focusing on the main components of CSC, the programme intends to enable children to better understand how sustainable planning can design vibrant, exciting and environmentally friendly places to live. An inter-school competition to design a small community will be set up during the year to enable children to put what they have learnt during the sessions into practice. The theme selected to illustrate the UPC's participation at the WFES is 'Sustainability through the Eyes of the Future'. To illustrate this credo and to champion the Estidama School Programme, the UPC has collaborated with Abu Dhabi Tourism '&' Culture Authority (TCA) to use 'Hamdoon', their highly popular cartoon character, as the charismatic emblem to promote the programme, in line with its 'Find out how we're creating our sustainable future slogan. The programme has been designed to incorporate modules that follow a number of the UPC's key standards and guideline manuals. Module 1 covers mobility, street and infrastructure design and will use the Urban Street Design Module as a base. Module 2 will explore housing and the creation of complete communities that offer a range of community facilities, in line with the Community Facility Planning Standards. The third module will encourage students to consider parks and recreational areas - what kinds of parks and play areas they would like to see and how existing areas can be improved, as per the Public Realm Design Manual. Module 4 will examine industrial development, under the guise of Economic Vision 2030 to ensure students think about job creation and economic diversification within the Emirate. The fifth and final module will focus on schools and education facilities - students will have the opportunity to design their own schools and the kinds of courses they think will be beneficial in the future. The Estidama School Programme will be supported through multiple communication channels and tailored tools to maximise the impact of the campaign. As a primary example to illustrate the approach, the UPC is unveiling yesterday a new video designed for several applications (internet, iPad, etc.) to promote the CSC initiative. - Emirates News Agency, WAM