ECO champs put Pembrokeshire on the map once again, as three county finalists attended the prestigious Sustainable Academy Awards, held in Cardiff recently.

Sustainability Champion Wales, sponsored by Natural Resources Wales, was awarded to Kiri Howell, an education officer at Keep Wales Tidy.

Kiri helps run the Foundation for Environmental Education’s Eco Schools programme in Pembrokeshire.

Kiri, from Tenby, spends much of her own time taking part in beach cleans and promoting community sustainability.

The Well-being of Future Generations Act is at the forefront of everything Kiri does and she works hard to help people understand the importance of sustainability.

"I was extremely proud to win as I am a strong advocate for personal environmental action within the community,” said Kiri.

“It was great to be nominated alongside other Pembrokeshire based organisations which highlights the strength of our county's commitment to sustainability action".

Also attending the awards was Amanda Absalom-Lowe, founder of the charity Pembrokeshire Care Share & Give (Recycle4Charity) who, after winning last year, were nominated again, and came runner-up in the Sustainable Community Group Award, sponsored by EDF Renewables.

Pembrokeshire Care, Share & Give was established to promote sustainable waste management through the recycling of waste which may otherwise go to landfill.

Amanda said: "Being nominated in the Sustainable Academy Awards again this year was another huge achievement. As a small charity, it was great to be recognised as having such a positive impact on the community.

“We could not recycle for charity without the continued support of the Pembrokeshire people and I thank them for recycling items in addition to local authority recycling collections".

Another county finalist was Pembrokeshire Coastal Forum (PCF)’s Coastal Curriculum programme, which brings real-life issues of climate change, coastal management and sustainable development into classrooms.

Tim Brew, education manager at PCF said: “Getting pupils out of the classroom and learning outdoors results in a range of positive effects on their personal health and well-being, both physically and mentally. We were delighted to receive recognition for our work through a nomination at the Sustainable Academy Awards and look forward to continuing to work with teachers and pupils across Pembrokeshire.”