Environmental students from the University of Port Harcourt undergoing a six-month internship atthe Pilex Center, an Environmental and Human Rights Advocacy organisation based in Port Harcourt, have begun hands on training .
Barely days after a practical training on Mangrove planting, the students were this week, in a civic education session.
Executive Director of the Center, Courage Nsirimovu Esq., told the students that Pilex is poised to help them develop not just Environmental skills but also, a passion for activism to join advocates for Human and environmental justice in the communities and society at large.
In commemoration of the 2024. Day, the internship were privileged to be in the company of renowned Environmentalists including Environmental laureate, Comrade Nnimmo Bassey, executive director of Home of Mother Earth, HOMEF, executive director of Kebetkache Women Development and Resource Center, Dr Emem Okon and forefront Ogoni Rights advocate, Comrade Celestine Akpobari on a visit to HYPREP mangrove rehabilitation sites Oin Ogoni.
The visit accorded the students opportunity to better understand, the issues of oil pollution ain the resultant degradation of the Niger Delta Environment and livelihood while also teaching them restoration mechanisms with the replanting exercise in which they also partook.
In the follow-up civic education sensitization workshop which held in their Piled Center, the students were taken through the fundamental human rights principles.
The resource person, Mrs Nengi Banigo explained that society is governed by three fundamental rights instruments -the Universal Human Rights Principle, regional and national organs. In Nigeria she told them, the 1999 Constitution as amended, governs domestically while tye African Peoples Protocols on Human Rights serves as the regional rights protection instrument.
The University of Port Harcourt lecturer said a clean environment is a guaranteed right in chapter four of the Nigerian Constitution and the African Peoples Protocols on Human Rights.
