Pictured: Group photo of 2025 award recipients, Gauteng Eco-Schools
Multi-stakeholder partnerships power measurable sustainability outcomes in over 120 Gauteng schools
Johannesburg, South Africa – 4 March 2026: Gauteng’s schools took centre stage at the WESSA Eco-Schools Awards Ceremony, held at The Garden Venue Hotel on 27 February 2026, where educators, learners, partners and government representatives gathered to recognise measurable environmental action across the province.
Hosted by WESSA (The Wildlife and Environment Society of South Africa) during its centenary year, the ceremony recognised schools implementing practical sustainability initiatives ranging from biodiversity restoration and waste management to water stewardship and community outreach.
Opening the ceremony, WESSA CEO Cindy-Lee Cloete situated the moment within the organisation’s historic milestone, “Whether you’ve been with us for decades or just a couple of days, today you are part of something extraordinary, because we sit at 100 this year – 100 years of citizen action, 100 years of environmental leadership, 100 years of believing that education is the lever that will make a change in our communities and in our schools.”
Pictured above: WESSA CEO Cindy-Lee Cloete
She emphasised that the Eco-Schools programme represents more than environmental awareness, Cloete shared that, “EcoSchools in South Africa is one of the most impactful environmental education programmes in this country, not just a WESSA programme, but a teacher movement and a learner-led action campaign.”
Education as nation building
Addressing principals and educators in the room, Cloete highlighted the enduring power of classroom leadership, “Policy can shift, funding cycles can fluctuate, governments can change, economies can wobble – but a teacher in a classroom committed to raising environmentally conscious citizens, that is nation building; that is long-term change.” She reminded schools that their work extends far beyond compliance with curriculum requirements, “You are not just delivering a curriculum; you are shaping citizens for the future and raising a generation that will not see sustainability as a project, but as a way of being.”
The keynote address by Ms Dululu Hlatshaneni, Deputy Director: Social Cohesion and Equity in Education at the Department of Basic Education, affirmed the programme’s provincial impact, stating that, “In this cycle alone, 622 schools are participating nationally, and here in Gauteng we celebrate over 100 schools whose commitment to environmental education is transforming their communities. These achievements reflect leadership, innovation and a shared vision for sustainable development.”
Pictured above: Ms Dululu Hlatshaneni, Deputy Director: Social Cohesion and Equity in Education at the Department of Basic Education
From waste to water, showcasing measurable impact
Selected schools showcased projects demonstrating the depth of environmental action taking place across Gauteng:
- ADvTECH Schools reported 98 environmental projects implemented across 42 participating schools in 2025 alone, alongside 253 environmental days and 254 environmental lessons delivered.
- The eWASA & WESSA SA Schools Waste Management and Education Project reached more than 2,700 learners and 70 teachers, with schools recycling over 16,000 kilograms of waste.
- Under the UNICEF Green Rising Project, Phase 1 reached over 12,000 people across 66 schools and communities nationally, planted 2,148 trees, cleaned 700 tons of waste and rehabilitated 260 hectares of land.
A spotlight on leadership with these special awards
Several schools were recognised for exceptional thematic leadership:
- Biodiversity Stewardship Award: Ipontshe Primary School
- Circular Economy Champion Award: Diepsloot Secondary School No. 3 (recycling over 8,000kg of waste and demonstrating innovation in reuse initiatives)
- Water Wise Warriors Award: Moduopo Primary School
- Ubuntu for Nature Award: Pinnacle Colleges Rynfield
- Eco-Innovation Award: Waterkloof House Preparatory School
“When young people feel connected to nature, they feel connected to themselves and through our Eco-Schools programme we are raising a generation that will protect who we are into the future,” adds Cloete.
The ceremony also honoured long-standing corporate and institutional partners including ADvTECH, AECI, Clean Air Fund, the Department of Basic Education, Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE), ENGIE, eWASA, First Rand Foundation, Groundwork, Modderfontein Conservation Society, N3TC, Nedbank, South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA), South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI), Sun International, UNICEF and WISPECO Aluminium.
As WESSA enters its second century, Cloete closed with a call to collective responsibility: “The next century of WESSA belongs to all of you and it begins with all of us. Remember: together, we educate, we advocate, we act for our natural heritage.”
Full list of Schools recognised – As awarded at the Gauteng Eco-Schools Awards Ceremony 2025)
ADvTECH Schools
- Platinum 2 Decade (Year 17): Pecanwood College (also recipient of the ADvTECH Snippets Award)
- Green Flag Decade (Year 13): Pinnacle Colleges Ridge View
- Bronze Decade (Year 11): Tyger Valley College
- Platinum 2 (Year 7): Crawford International Sandton
- Gold Award (Year 4): Trinityhouse Little Falls
- Silver Award (Year 2):
- Abbotts High School Centurion
- Abbotts High School Johannesburg South
- Abbotts High School Northcliff
- Abbotts High School Pretoria East
- Crawford International Bedfordview
- Crawford International Bryanston
- Crawford International Fourways
- Crawford International Lonehill
- Crawford International Pretoria
- Crawford International Ruimsig
- Junior Colleges Fourways
- Junior Colleges Meyersdal
- Junior Colleges Raslouw
- Junior Colleges Ridge View
- Junior Colleges Sunninghill
- Maragon Mooikloof
- Maragon Olympus
- Southdowns College
- Pinnacle Colleges Copperleaf
- Pinnacle Colleges Founders Hill
- Pinnacle Colleges Kyalami
- Pinnacle Colleges Linden
- Pinnacle Colleges Raslouw
- Pinnacle Colleges Rynfield
- Pinnacle Colleges Waterfall
- The Bridge School Lonehill
- The Bridge School Morningside
- Trinityhouse Centurion
- Trinityhouse Glenvista
- Trinityhouse Randpark Ridge
eWASA & WESSA SA Schools Waste Management Project
Silver Award (Year 2):
- Diepsloot Combined School
- Diepsloot Secondary School No. 3
- Diepsloot West Secondary School
- Itirele-Zenzele Comprehensive School
- Masisebenze Comprehensive School
- Masiqhakaze Secondary School
- Sunrise High School
- Tembisa West Secondary School
- Winnie Mandela Secondary School
- Zitikeni Secondary School
AECI & Modderfontein Conservation Society
- Green Flag (Year 3) & LEAF Award: Ikage Primary School
- Silver (Year 2) & LEAF Awards:
- Bovet Primary School
- Iphutheng Primary School
- OR Tambo Primary School
- Zenzeleni Primary School
Sun International Eco-Schools Project
- Platinum 2 (Year 7):
- Ipontshe Primary School
- Moduopo Primary School
- Gold (Year 4):
- Buhlebemfundo Secondary School
- Ekukhanyisweni Primary School
- Mamelodi East Prevocational School
- Soshanguve Secondary
- Tembisa School of Specialization
- Tsimong Primary School
N3TC Eco-Schools
- Green Flag Decade (Year 13):
- Ntataise Educare Centre
- Zenzeleni Educare Centre
- Bronze Decade (Year 11): Zamaleka Primary School
- Diamond (Year 10): Phomello Primary School
- Platinum 4 (Year 9): Thuto ke Lesedi Educare Centre
- Platinum 1 (Year 6):
- Qalabotjha Creche
- Qalabotjha Secondary School
- International Flag (Year 5): Retshedisitswe Secondary School
WISPECO Aluminium Eco-Schools
- Strelitzia (21 Years): Monde Primary School
- Silver (Year 2): Tamaho Primary School
- Bronze (Year 1): Naledi Pre School
Independently Registered Schools (Department of Basic Education)
- Strelitzia (Year 20 – 2024) & Arum Lily (Year 21 – 2025): Laerskool Anton Van Wouw
- Emerald (Year 20): St Andrew’s School for Girls
- Platinum 3 Decade (Year 17): Waterkloof House Preparatory School
- Platinum 1 Decade (Year 16): Brescia House School
- Green Flag Decade (Year 13): Jiyana Secondary School
- Bronze Decade (Year 11): St Peter’s Prep School
- Platinum 2 (Year 7): Jeppe High School for Girls
- Platinum 1 (Year 6): Jan Celliers Laerskool en Pre-Primêr
- International Flag (Year 5):
- Hoërskool Zwartkop
- Sedi-Laka Primary School
- Gold (Year 4):
- Canterbury Preparatory School
- Comforters Kiddies Care Centre
- Zama Zama New School of Hope
- Green Flag (Year 3):
- Kyalami Preparatory School
- Pridwin Preparatory School
- Silver (Year 2):
- St Stithians College
- Yellow Wood Environmental Preparatory School
- Bronze (Year 1):
- Beaulieu Preparatory School
- Bryanston Primary School
- Thorntree Primary School