Media Release
Belagavi, Sep 27: St Paul’s High School, Belagavi, organised the St Paul’s Greenathon 2026 on Sunday, September 27, as part of its year-long celebrations marking 170 years of Jesuit service and educational mission at the institution.
The Greenathon, organised under the theme “1700 + 1700 Trees for 170 Years”, brought together around 4,000 students, parents, teachers, parent-teacher association (PTA) members, alumni, well-wishers and other members of the school community.
The initiative aimed to promote environmental responsibility and inspire young people and families to care for nature and future generations. Participants were encouraged not only to plant saplings but also to nurture and protect them.
The enthusiastic participation of parents transformed the Greenathon into a community-driven environmental initiative, highlighting the importance of collective action in promoting sustainability.
The entire programme was planned, organised and monitored by PTA members of St Paul’s High School and St Paul’s Jesuit School in close collaboration with the school management and staff. The school expressed gratitude to the PTA members and parents for their dedication and contribution to the successful conduct of the event.
The Greenathon reflected the Jesuit educational tradition of extending learning beyond the classroom and forming young people committed to justice, service, compassion and the common good. The sapling-planting initiative was presented as the beginning of a long-term commitment to environmental conservation.
Eminent Paulite alumni award presented
An important highlight of the Greenathon was the presentation of the prestigious Eminent Paulite Alumni Award to distinguished alumnus Sameer Majli in recognition of his contributions to environmental conservation, education and social transformation.
Majli is an ecologist, educator, trainer and social entrepreneur committed to promoting sustainable change through grassroots initiatives.
In April 2016, he founded the Green Saviours Association, a non-profit organisation dedicated to restoring native biodiversity and promoting environmental sustainability. Under his leadership, the organisation has undertaken more than 500 consecutive Sundays of tree-planting activities, with Majli personally associated with the planting of approximately 55,000 saplings.
The organisation works in areas including native species conservation, documentation and propagation of indigenous flora, chemical-free agroforestry, biodiverse orchard development and environmental awareness. It has conducted nearly 200 environmental awareness sessions and promoted eco-clubs in schools.
Through its Grama Sampada initiative, the organisation integrates chemical-free, biodiverse farming with rural livelihoods.
Majli has also founded Stratmen, a non-profit initiative that provides students with free career guidance, mentoring, employability training and placement assistance.
He currently serves as training and development officer at KLE Society and has trained students, faculty members and professionals across educational institutions and industries.
Majli holds a BSc in chemistry from Karnatak University and a BSc Tech in food and fermentation technology from UDCT, now known as ICT, Mumbai. He also completed a summer research project at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru, under the guidance of Bharat Ratna awardee Prof C N R Rao.
The award recognised his commitment to environmental conservation, education, employment and grassroots development, reflecting the values of service, responsibility and leadership promoted by the institution.
Jesuit leadership and dignitaries attend
The Greenathon was attended by Jesuit leadership from the Goa Province, including provincial Fr Pedro Rodrigues, the provincial’s consultors and other Jesuit companions.
Other dignitaries included MLA Asif Sait, range forest officer Prashant Gaurani, rector and manager Fr Santhosh Vaz, Fr Anand, consultor of the provincial, principal Fr Eric Mathias SJ, director of St Paul’s PUC Fr Malcolm and vice principal Fr Alendro D’Costa SJ.
Religious leaders representing the Sikh, Muslim and Hindu communities were also present, reflecting the spirit of fraternity and harmony.
Addressing the gathering, Fr Pedro Rodrigues appreciated the initiative and commended the commitment of the PTA, parents and students.
He emphasised that caring for creation was a shared responsibility and encouraged children to view the saplings they planted as a commitment to protecting the environment and caring for the common home.
He also highlighted that the Jesuit legacy was rooted in service, responsibility and collective action for the greater good, expressing hope that the Greenathon would inspire more people to become caretakers of creation.
As St Paul’s High School marks 170 years of Jesuit educational service, the Greenathon seeks to create a lasting legacy rooted in environmental care, social responsibility and hope for future generations.
The initiative carried the message, “Small Hands… Big Impact!”, with the school expressing gratitude to the PTA members, parents, students, teachers, volunteers, alumni and well-wishers who contributed to the event.