Towards a greener future at Clean Up @ South West 2025: Enhanced eco-curriculum for green schools

The annual Clean Up @ South West event takes on a new dimension in 2025, serving as the launchpad for an enhanced eco-curriculum under the South West Community Development Council (CDC)'s Green Schools @ South West programme. This revamped curriculum, tailored for primary and secondary students in the South West District, aligns with the CDC’s 10-year Sustainable South West Masterplan, and the Singapore Green Plan 2030 pillars of a ‘City in Nature’, ‘Energy Reset’ and ‘Sustainable Living’. It aims to shape young leaders who will champion sustainability and urban greening efforts. Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Trade and Industry and Adviser to Chua Chu Kang GRC Grassroots Organisations, Mr Gan Kim Yong, and Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Trade and Industry & Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth, and Mayor of South West District Ms Low Yen Ling, will unveil the enhanced eco-curriculum to an audience of residents, educators, students, corporate, and community partners.

2        Since its inception in 2007, the Green Schools @ South West programme has engaged over 40,000 students in the district through public health and resource conservation-centric activities that turn everyday lessons into practical and impactful actions. This approach supports Singapore’s six-decade journey towards becoming a clean, green and liveable city.

3        Responding to Singapore's sustainability imperatives, under the Singapore Green Plan 2030, the enhanced eco-curriculum features three key modules - Green Spaces, Zero Waste and Energy Conservation. Schools can now pursue the Green Spaces module by spearheading student-led activities to maintain school gardens and rewild urban spaces in the community, thereby cultivating in students a love for nature and outdoors under the ‘City in Nature’ pillar. Complementing this, the Zero Waste module fosters critical thinking in students about the impact of their waste and recycling behaviours and uses data-based problem-solving skills to encourage behavioural change. The Energy Conservation module highlights the critical links between electricity generation, climate change and energy saving practices. These modules go beyond theoretical learning, allowing students the opportunity to develop impactful sustainable habits and contribute to sustainability in their school and community through real-world projects with corporate and community partners. The curriculum also equips students with the skills and confidence to take actionable steps to address pressing environmental challenges.

4        Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade and Industry Mr Gan Kim Yong said, “As a low-lying island state, Singapore is particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change. Clean Up @ South West contributes to the whole-of-society effort to advance the Singapore Green Plan.  The enhanced Green Schools @ South West curriculum, with its emphasis on Green Spaces and Zero Waste management, complements these broader efforts by equipping and empowering our students so that they take ownership of shaping a sustainable future.”

5        “Through flagship initiatives like today’s recycling drive, Clean Up @ South West, the South West CDC continues building sustainable communities in our district by establishing strong partnerships with corporate and community partners, government agencies, and schools. With everyone playing their part, a vibrant culture of environmental responsibility is emerging and making our district even greener. We hope that the enhanced Green Schools curriculum will turn everyday lessons into practical, impactful actions that students will take to make a positive difference to the world around them,” said Mayor Low.

6        To support the enhanced Green Schools @ South West curriculum, South West CDC has collaborated with youth leaders from the National University of Singapore (NUS) to develop a ‘Sustainability Resource Pack’ for educators. First piloted in Blangah Rise Primary School, this educational toolkit aims to equip educators with the skills to help students gain an appreciation of how the world manages finite resources through assembly talks and exclusive learning journeys to sustainable facilities, as well as hands-on data-driven activities to develop solutions and rally behavioural change.

7        As part of Clean Up @ South West 2025, a total of 46 community recycling points were set up across the district, enabling residents to contribute to environmental efforts. Over 1,145 tonnes of recyclables has been collected since its inception in 2006, which is equivalent to saving more than 19,400 trees or filling two Olympic size swimming pools. This initiative remains a vital platform for fostering community-wide environmental stewardship. Please refer to Annex A for the list of exhibition booths at the event.

8        Clean Up @ South West is an annual recycling programme organised by the South West CDC, supported by Grassroots Organisations in the district, corporate partners and schools. The programme has been organised in the South West District since 2006 and supports the Sustainable South West masterplan ‘Our Zero Waste Journey’ pillar to reduce waste as a community and increase residents’ awareness of the importance of the 3Rs (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle), as well as ‘Our Active, Gracious People’ pillar to celebrate and showcase the efforts of like-minded stakeholders, promote environmental ownership and a caring and sharing community.

9       Photos for Clean Up @ South West 2025 may be downloaded from the following link ↗ (opens in new tab).

Annex A - Exhibition Booths