This allowed us to expand the program to cover 30 schools and 5000 students for participating in the program. In addition, it was also decided to print the Guidebook in Sri Lanka after translating the same from Japanese language to Sinhalese.

Advocacy activity was vigorously made possible by GCSL staff members visiting schools, involving government/municipal officials for their support so that we could conduct the program on a large scale.

In this connection, a Teachers Seminar was held on 11^th of September at which Mr. Tom Kawamoto and Mr. Kuwahara from GCJ participated and encouraged school teachers to join the program. The second stage of the competition was the writing of an essay and a speech by a total of selected 100 students and 3 final winners were selected for the participation at the GCJ Award Ceremony in Japan in December.

The award ceremony took place on 2^nd December 2008 at the auditorium of the National Youth Council Services Centre at Maharagama where the Air tickets, certificates, gifts, etc.were awarded to the winners. As a side event, a contest of short dramas by school kids were held, by which other kids/teachers/parents visually recognized the importance of environmental protection.

During the stay in Japan, the three winners of the program along with the teacher who accompanied them and Dr. Jagath Seneviratne, President of Green Cross Sri Lanka visited Mitsui and Company and met the officials. The officials of Mitsui and Company received the visitors warmly and had a very cordial discussion. The students, the teachers and the President thanked the officials of the company for the magnanimous donations for visiting Japan and participate at the GCJ Award Ceremony in Japans held in Tokyo.