Fife College students awarded scholarships for efforts to tackle climate change

Three Fife College (@fifecollege) students have been awarded scholarships for their efforts to tackle climate change.

Jorja Mitchell from Cowdenbeath, Evie West from Glenrothes and Courtney Hickman from Leven have all been awarded the New Park Educational Trust Climate Change Scholarship for the steps they are taking to help address the challenges of climate change.

Jorja, Courtney and Evie were each awarded scholarships of between £200 and £400 by Adam Smith Scholarships, part of Fife College.

The scholarship is sponsored jointly by the New Park Educational Trust and Fife College’s Estates and Sustainability team. The New Park Educational Trust offers grants to individuals and organisations with the charitable object of advancing education for the public benefit.

The scholarship was opened for applications in November last year to coincide with COP28 in Dubai, to raise awareness of the event and the issues around climate change. To apply for the scholarship, students were asked to submit an entry via an essay, piece of art, video, presentation or another medium, highlighting actions they are taking to combat climate change.

Advanced Certificate: Pathway to Social Sciences student Jorja said:

“I feel very excited about winning this scholarship. I will be spending the money on something to benefit my studies.”

Evie West, studying NPA Trowel Trades, said:

“I am delighted to have won this scholarship as it means when I leave college and gain employment in the construction sector, I can purchase all of the tools I may need.”

HNC: Police Studies student Courtney Hickman, said:

“I feel so happy and proud of myself that I have achieved something so great that I never thought I would. I will use the money towards becoming more independent, learn to drive and support my studies. This has given me just the boost I needed.”

Lucy Jackson, Sustainability Co-ordinator at Fife College said:

“I was really impressed with the diversity of courses that the students were studying and the importance of sustainability highlighted in all the participants’ work. I loved how Courtney illustrated the climate emergency by creating visuals and writing moving words through her poetry. Evie’s work was special to me because she highlighted how climate change is going to impact her future career, and the steps she will take in the construction industry to support sustainability. Jorja’s work I also found very powerful, as she illustrated how our environment has changed over the years due to human impact through her words and illustrations. For such young entries, I was excited about the level of awareness the students had for tackling climate change in their personal life and studies.”