The Repsol Foundation's Zinkers Awards recognizes schools with the best performance towards the ecological transition

• Padre Dehón de Novelda School and Nuestra Señora del Carmen School, in the primary and secondary school categories, respectively, are the two winning schools of the Repsol Foundation's 4th Zinkers Awards, which recognize the initiatives carried out at Spanish schools in the areas of ecological transition, climate change, and sustainability. 
• Each winning school will receive a prize of €15,000 to go towards an innovative educational project carried out on school premises. 
• The vice chairman and executive managing director of the Repsol Foundation, António Calçada, presented the Zinkers Awards yesterday to the winning centers of this year's edition at an event held in Madrid. 
• António Calçada recognized the work of teachers because "to educate in energy is to provide training today to the leaders who will make future decisions about the world we are leaving them" and highlighted "the Repsol Foundation's commitment to the promotion of energy and sustainability education through the Zinkers programs, which seek to help mold responsible, committed citizens who think critically." 

Around 10,000 primary and secondary school students participated in this edition 

Yesterday, the Repsol Foundation announced the final winners of the 4th edition of the Zinkers Awards: Padre Dehón de Novelda School in primary education and Nuestra Señora del Carmen School in secondary education. The names of the winners were revealed at an event held at the Giner de los Ríos Foundation in Madrid. 

Each school will receive a cash award of €15,000 to finance innovative educational projects and a fun educational activity on science and sustainability for students. 

During the gala, the awards were also presented to the finalists in each autonomous community, which have each received €2,500 innovative educational projects and an activity with the winning students. 

The event was opened by the vice chairman and executive managing director of the Repsol Foundation, António Calçada, who congratulated both winners and all the schools participating in this year's edition. Calçada wanted to share the importance of a key concept that is currently at the center of debate on the world stage: the energy trilemma, or the balance between energy security, affordability, and environmental sustainability. Every society must take these three essential objectives into account when dealing with energy. "Some experts already speak of a fourth, increasingly important element: social acceptance. Energy decisions must be fair, participatory, and understood by the population," Calçada said. 

Teachers Miguel Ángel Azorín of Padre Dehón de Novelda School and Delia Outes of Nuestra Señora del Carmen School collected the awards in recognition of the work done by them and their students this past school year. 

The event also included the presentation of Zinkers Lectura Fácil (Zinkers Easy Reading), which complements primary and secondary education programs with resources that support inclusion, taking into account the diversity of the student body and making it possible for each person to learn at their own pace. Zinkers Lectura Fácil is a methodology that guarantees accessibility by making content more comprehensible. 

During the event there was also a space for reflection and debate on the future of education, with a roundtable discussion on "Educational challenges in the era of sustainability and digitalization." The participants were Judith Fernández, general director of Educational Planning and Innovation for the Xunta de Galicia; José María Cabello, general director of Personnel, Training, and Innovation of the Government of Aragón; Guillermo Negre, a primary school teacher in the autonomous community of Valencia; and Virginia Fraile, a secondary school teacher in La Rioja. 

Also discussed was the role played by "Education, the family, and society in taking on the ecological transition." This conversation included David Cervera, general director of Bilingualism and Quality of Teaching for the Community of Madrid; Begoña Ladrón de Guevara, chairwoman of COFAPA (Confederation of Parents of Students); José María Moya, general director of Siena Educación; Cristóbal Cobo, specialist in education and technology; and Carmen Valdés-Hevia, manager of Education at the Repsol Foundation. 

Winning school in the primary education category 

Padre Dehón de Novelda School in Alicante was recognized as the best school in the primary education category. Teacher Miguel Ángel Azorín and his 6th grade students presented the "Zero Gravity" project, carried out with the knowledge and tools acquired through the Zinkers programs, with which they incorporated solutions to use energy more intelligently and recycle creatively, joining the waste management program of their city's environmental department. Students analyzed their school's electricity bills, changed bulbs out for others with LED technology to reduce consumption, and created explanatory guides for their colleagues and family members. Through their National Dehographic and Electric Fest projects, they have also investigated environmental situations in different parts of the world and created a model of an ecological amusement park. 

Winning school in the secondary education category 

Nuestra Señora del Carmen School in Fisterra, A Coruña, was named the best school in the secondary education category. Teacher Delia Outes collected the award thanks to the work done with 2nd year ESO (8th grade) students over the course of the year. Teachers and students had no doubt that explaining the different activities carried out with Zinkers not only made their work done visible but also involved families, neighbors, and the community to expand its scope. Many of the activities were carried out in collaboration with different city institutions and associations or others nearby, multiplying the impact and repercussion of the project.