TSL chose ‘Green Jobs’ as our theme for the 2023 competition to explore global post Covid 19 recovery plans to ‘build back greener’, as well as recognising that an increasing number of young people want to work in roles which will benefit society and our planet, and work for businesses that are environmentally sustainable. However, research has shown that many young people are unsure how to turn that passion into a career and employers are already encountering green skills shortages.
Students (primary age 7-11 and secondary age 12-18) were invited to write an essay outlining their ideas on “How young people can be better supported to thrive in green jobs?”
This year, we received 1,215 essay entries from 65 countries and the Essay Competition Winners were announced at the International Essay and Debates Awards Ceremonies on the 7th & 8th June.
Primary Schools
Ahel Saha, age 9 from King’s College School, Cambridge, UK is the recipient of this year’s first prize. Ahel’s essay highlighted several ways to support the young people throughout their educational years through collaboration between school, parents, community, government, charitable organisations and universities. Ideas which impressed the judges included opportunities to plan and execute green projects in school, extending the curriculum to learn about theories of sustainable living and planning for green jobs and creation of apprenticeships and taster sessions.
The top prize winners are listed in the table below. See our full list of awards here.
| Final Position | Entrant | School/College | Country |
| 1st | Ahel Saha | King’s College School | United Kingdom |
| 2nd | Aadhyaa Aravind Shankar | Private Entry | India |
| Joint 3rd | Jeremy Zhang | King’s College School | United Kingdom |
| Joint 3rd | Esther Ibukun Oyinboade | PearlShore | Nigeria |
| 4th | Nathan Raenn Hombre | Multiple Intelligence International School | Philippines |
| Joint 5th | Hamsini Senthil | International School Seychelles | Seychelles |
| Joint 5th | Alina Ryburn | Hartland International School | United Arab Emirates |
| 6th | Tandie Kimunguyi | Hartland International School | United Arab Emirates |
| Joint 7th | Nicholas Zheng | King’s College School | United Kingdom |
| Joint 7th | Minh Nhat Anh Tran | Sunshine Maple Bear Elementary School | Vietnam |
| Joint 7th | Hiranga Bandara Suraweera | Trinity College | Sri Lanka |
| 8th | Uyen Nguyen Thai Tran | Sunshine Maple Bear Elementary School | Vietnam |
| 9th | Gauri Nair | Hartland International School | United Arab Emirates |
Secondary Schools
The first prize secondary and overall Grand Prize Winner was awarded to Alexander Kameoka from Fukuoka International School in Japan. The judges were impressed by Alex’s essay which focused on a solution centred around removing the key barriers faced by young people trying to enter jobs in the green economy; lack of capital, lack of skills and a lack of knowledge of green jobs.
Here are the top prize winners for this category.
| Final Position | Entrant | School/College | Country |
| 1st & Grand Prize Winner | Alexander Kameoka | Fukuoka International School | Japan |
| 2nd | Dhruv Bhatt | Bhartiyam International School | India |
| 3rd | Azat Syzdykov Samatovich | Nazarbayev Intellectual school of Physics and Mathematics in Astana | Kazakhstan |
| 4th | Matthew Yik Yu Wong | Private Entry | Hong Kong |
| Joint 5th | Noreen Rae Lagrana | Saint Pedro Poveda College | Philippines |
| Joint 5th | Michelle Madugba | Jephthah Comprehensive Secondary School | Nigeria |
| Joint 5th | Ke Yue New | River Valley High School | Singapore |
| 6th | Keshma Tvisha Rampersad | Naparima Girls’ High School | Trinidad and Tobago |
| 7th | Marcela Valeria Boarotto | European School of Alicante | Spain |
| 8th | Yu Han Long | Private Entry | Singapore |
| 9th | Navanga Dewmini Dulhara Perera | Horizon College International, Malabe | Sri Lanka |
| Joint 10th | Iskra Gnjidic | Vuk Karadzic | Serbia |
| Joint 10th | Kayla Safira Azzahra | Binus School Bekasi | Indonesia |
Congratulations to all the students who took part and shared their ideas on “How young people can be better supported to thrive in green jobs”.
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