• The Regional Minister of Infrastructure and Mobility today presented the prize, worth €3,000, to the winning video for the province of A Coruña, made by the 2nd year primary school pupils of this school.
• Vázquez Mourelle underlines the elaboration of the video and the staging of the water cycle by the children through 'Hidra', a travelling drop that conveys the importance of this precious resource and the need to take care of it.
• The reception of these first awards organised by Augas de Galicia, in collaboration with the Regional Ministry of Culture, Education, Vocational Training and Universities, to promote the responsible use of water among the youngest children, is noteworthy.
• Children in the 1st and 2nd year of primary school from all over Galicia took part in this initiative with an audiovisual piece for dissemination on social networks, with one winner and one runner-up per province being chosen.
• Colexio Galaxia School in Ribeira was the finalist for the province of A Coruña with its work "A sombra da auga".

The Regional Minister of Infrastructure and Mobility, Ethel Vázquez, today highlighted the example of water care conveyed by the work 'As Pinguiñas viaxeiras' by the Manuela Rial Mouzo school in Cee, winner of the Innovaugas 4.0 School Prize.

Vázquez Mourelle came to the municipality of Cee to present the first Innovaugas 4.0 School Awards to the winning video for the province of A Coruña, 'As Pinguiñas viaxeiras', produced by the 2nd year primary students of the school in Cee. The prize is worth 3,000 euros.

The Regional Minister congratulated the students and teachers for their work on the water cycle, and thanked them for their involvement and stimulation of the raptors in the making of such an illustrative video, and for instilling in them and educating them in the culture of water, a very valuable asset that must be cared for, she said.

She congratulated the 2nd year primary school students for their efforts in the production of the video and the staging, through Hidra, the travelling drop, of the entire water cycle: from the water catchment source to the drinking water treatment process before reaching homes; and the purification process before being returned to the environment in ideal conditions.

Ethel Vázquez highlighted the very visual and attractive staging, as well as the simple and very understandable message with which the young people conveyed that water is an indispensable and precious resource that cannot be wasted. In this sense, she emphasised the schoolchildren's ability to transmit, like no one else, the importance of water and the whole cycle that each drop of water follows until it reaches our homes and we turn on the tap to brush our teeth or wash the dishes. 

Ethel Vázquez expressed the Xunta's satisfaction with the reception of these 1st Innovaugas 4.0 School Prizes organised by Augas de Galicia in collaboration with the Regional Ministry of Culture, Education, Vocational Training and Universities to promote and encourage the responsible use of water among young people.

The prizes were aimed at first and second year primary school pupils from all over Galicia, who had to produce an audiovisual piece of no more than one minute's duration on respect for water. The videos are intended for dissemination through social networks. In the end, 4 winners were chosen from among the participating schools, one per province, as well as finalists.

Colexio Galaxia de Ribeira was the finalist of these awards in the province of A Coruña, for its work "A sombra da auga". In this case, the jury rewarded the effort in editing and the originality of the video presented. The gift was a water bottle made from recycled plastic, with which to continue to put into practice the saving and care of water.

With these awards, the Xunta seeks to encourage environmental education among young people about the responsible use of water and the need to take care of it, because it is an asset that is running out.

Finally, the Regional Minister stressed that the projects presented at these Innovaugas 4.0 School Awards are also an example for older children, who can learn from the youngest: using their language and digital tools, they teach us the best way to transmit the values of water, she concluded.

Innovaugas 4.0

These awards are part of the Innovaugas 4.0 project, promoted by the Xunta de Galicia to achieve new solutions for advanced integrated water management, optimise water resources and provide a long-term response to the demands of different uses, in balance with the natural environment.  

The Innovaugas 4.0 project has a budget of 7 million euros and is 80% co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) through the Spanish Multi-regional Operational Programme (POPE) 2014-2020.

The Innovaugas 4.0 project was selected by the Ministry of Science and Innovation in 2020 and has a grant of €4.2 million from European funds, and is also co-financed by the Galician Innovation Agency, with €700,000, and by Augas de Galicia, with €2.1 million.