On 11 June 2024, a collaborative seminar between the EcoWaste Coalition and the Ateneo School of Medicine and Public Health (ASMPH) Centre for Research and Innovation (ACRI) was held at Caloocan High School. The event, organized in partnership with the Teachers’ Dignity Coalition, focused on chemical safety in the classroom and was attended by approximately 100 elementary and high school teachers and school leaders.

Dr. Geminn Louis C. Apostol, the Environmental Health Flagship Program Head at ACRI, tackled the various possible chemicals students may be exposed to in the classroom through a plenary lecture. The teachers were oriented on the possible health effects of the hazards, how to identify these, and what can be done to mitigate the exposure. 

Dr. Gelo Apostol provides a lecture on common environmental toxicants in the classroom.

The plenary lecture was followed by an interactive session with the teachers in breakout groups, discussing their learnings and other questions or concerns that they had with their own classrooms. Together with their facilitators, the teachers also systematically identified potential chemical hazards in the classroom and its surroundings. The facilitators included Ms. Anna Enriquez, the project manager, Dr. Percival Lao, Dr. Sary Valenzuela, Ms. Noelle Cubacub, and Ms. Maduretno Asvinigita, ACRI’s research fellow from Indonesia under Southeast Asian One Health Network (SEAOHUN). 

Afterwards, each group was tasked to develop a creative learning and educational material to use in the classroom to raise chemical safety awareness among their own students. The activities sparked significant interest among the teachers, producing a variety of creative tools, from songs to posters. One key topic was the extension of the traditional 3Rs (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle) to 6Rs, incorporating the concepts of Rethink, Refuse, and Repair, as discussed by Dr. Apostol.

Elementary and high school teachers discuss and identify the possible chemical toxicants in the classroom

Manny Calonzo, convener of the EcoWaste Coalition, gave insight into the safety of tarpaulins,  registered crayons, and colored markers, highlighting the hazards posed by heavy metals in plastics. “We found out that most tarpaulins, those commonly used in schools and especially those used during campaign season contain very high levels of cadmium. Cadmium is a very toxic heavy metal which can also be found in unregulated crayons,” said Mr. Calonzo, highlighting the importance of choosing toxic-free educational learning materials in school and the classroom.

This educational seminar was part of the on-going partnership between ACRI and Ecowaste Coalition, in the pursuit of both raising awareness and also empowering educators with practical tools and strategies to address chemical hazards, ensuring a healthier future for all Filipino children.

As a result of this activity, an educator’s guide was developed with the aim to help teachers craft educational materials regarding chemical hazard identification in the classroom. Teachers play a pivotal role in maintaining safe classroom environments. This entails being aware of the potential chemical hazards present in everyday school supplies and maintenance products and knowing how to manage and mitigate these risks effectively.

The material may be accessed here.

(L-R) ACRI Facilitators Noelle Cubacub, ACRI EnviHealth Flagship Program Asst. Head Dr. Sary Valenzuela, ACRI EnviHealth Flagship Program Head Dr. Gelo Apostol, Former President of EcoWaste Coalition and Toxics-Free Committee Lead Manny Calonzo, ACRI EnviHealth Flagship Program Asst. Head Dr. Percival Lao, Project Manager and Research Associate Anna Beatrice Enriquez, SEAOHUN Research Fellow Gita Maduretno