Environment Minister Neletha Butterfield focused largely on the positive events her Ministry?s sponsors for the youth of Bermuda during a recent address to the House of Assembly.

Recently the Ministry sponsored an Environmental Youth Conference along with the Ernest E. Stempel Foundation, she said last Friday. It was the fourth of its kind and this year the theme was: ?Today?s Choices for Tomorrow?s Voices?.

Sixty students between the ages of eight and 18 attended the conference. Both public and private schools as well as two home schools participated in the event.

It allowed students to learn about the environment and sustainable development and gave them a venue to voice their concerns and make suggestions.

?It is extremely important to realise that through conferences such as this one, our youth can influence today the kind of environment that they will live in tomorrow,? she said.

Students participated in field trips, built blue bird boxes, planted gardens and made model fuel cell cars. Ms Butterfield said the conference was such as success she was committed to continue sponsorship of it and hoped it would be expanded in future years.

Ms Butterfield pointed out the Annual Exhibition also focused largely on the environment with the theme of the educational display competition being ?Sustainable Development?.

She added: ?Students successfully produced displays that reflected the need for all of us to take seriously the reservation of open spaces, use renewable energy and the importance of agriculture.?