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LAU students organize cleaning campaign, participate in global media project

LAU students cleaned up a forest in North Lebanon on 10/10/10 as part of the “One Day on Earth” campaign to raise awareness on issues of global impact.

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LAU students clean up a small forest in the village of Deddeh in El-Koura, North Lebanon, October 10.

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The activity was a part of the "One Day on Earth " global media project, in which thousands of people from across the world participated, documenting their experiences over the 24-hour period of October 10, 2010 (10/10/10).

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Elie Samia, executive director of the newly established Outreach and Civic Engagement Unit at LAU that organized the activity, also took part.

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Joseph Kanaan, program coordinator at LAU Byblos who oversaw the logistics of the activity, with a student participant.

Click on any photo above to view all four images.

A group of 10 LAU students filmed their cleaning/awareness campaign in El-Koura, North Lebanon, during which they collected waste scattered throughout a small forest in the village of Deddeh, October 10.

The campaign was held as part of the “One Day on Earth,” a global media project supported by the United Nations and several non-profits, in which thousands of students, documentary filmmakers, and inspired citizens from over 190 countries across the world participated, documenting their experiences on October 10, 2010 (10/10/10).

Organized by the newly established Outreach and Civic Engagement Unit at LAU, the campaign was designed to draw attention to the issues of climate change and global warming, and encourage students to take action in that regard.

“We participated in the event to have a cleaner Lebanon and to promote environmental sustainability,” says LAU student Ali Sibai, the president of the UNESCO Club at LAU Beirut and this year’s associate director of project management in the LAU Model United Nations program.

LAU students from both campuses as well as some members of the MUN program took part in the event. They were accompanied by Elie Samia, executive director of the new LAU unit, and Joseph Kanaan, program coordinator at LAU Byblos who oversaw the logistics of the activity. Local volunteers also lent a hand to clean the area.

In addition to shining light on global warming, the activity by the students was organized to promote a culture of activism among Lebanese youths. The students believe they are paving a road toward a better future for the country by encouraging their peers to actively engage in communities and help confront pressing issues.

“We are setting an example for other organizations and individuals to take action to limit the effects of issues of global and individual impact,” says Khaled Kabbara, a graduate LAU student majoring in international affairs, who participated in the campaign.

Footage from the event will be sent to “One Day on Earth,” and it may be included in a documentary that the project is creating to showcase the diversity of affairs — from conflict and tragedy to triumph and goodwill — that occur simultaneously around the world in one 24-hour period.

The students also registered the activity with the 350.org, an online group that organized the “10/10/10 Global Work Party” on October 10, specifically intended to address environmental issues.

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