• The third Macao-wide English Essay Competition selected 61 winning entries through a blind review process.
• The contest is Macau’s first English essay competition geared towards promoting the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals.

The third Macao-wide English Essay Competition (MEEC) held its award ceremony in mid-March at the Macau Science Center. The event attracted over 1,600 participants from 47 local schools, with 61 essays awarded. During the ceremony, individual and group awards were presented, and student representatives were invited to share their winning essays through speeches.

Organized by the Macao Professional Speaking Association (MPSA) and co-organized by the Language Exchange & Cultural Promotion Association, Society of Food & Environmental Health (Macao) and Sustaincia, this was Macau’s first English essay competition geared towards promoting the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals.

With the theme “Nature and Me”, the competition featured four categories for youths aged between 9 and 25.

The final 61 essays were awarded after multiple rounds of blind evaluations by a panel of judges. The Empowerment Award was won by Colégio Diocesano de São José 5 and the Best Achievement Award by Premier School Affiliated to Hou Kong Middle School. On the day of the award ceremony, a “Nature and Me” collection of the winning students’ essays was also released.

Organizing Committee Chair of MEEC and Executive Vice President of the MPSA, Sandy Leong, said the event aims to nurture a sense of ownership for young people within their own communities.

“By reflecting on various issues that they see, young people can learn to form their own solutions to the problems they are most concerned about,” she said. “The process should also provide a cycle of learning for both young people and adults involved. Through meaningful discussion about topics like finding harmony with nature, our community can all be a part of an inclusive, resilient and sustainable future.”