Muscat – Four teachers from Oman have won the GLOBE Cup Challenge, an environmental competition held for the first time alongside the FIFA World Cup, for a project monitoring conditions at football stadiums.

The winners were Fakhria bint Saud Al Balushi of Sawda Umm Al Muminin School, Hedaya bint Sulaiman Al Farsi of Asma bint Umays School, Yusra bint Hamid Al Dhawi of Sumaya School and Ali bin Rashid Al Jufaili of Abdul Rahman bin Abi Bakr School.

The Omani participants distinguished themselves at the Near East and North Africa level by collecting daily environmental data from local football stadiums throughout the competition.

Their project measured air temperature, ground surface temperature and land cover, with the findings uploaded regularly to the global GLOBE platform.

The Ministry of Education said the achievement reflects its efforts to enhance environmental education, scientific research and inquiry-based learning in schools.

It added that the programme enabled teachers and students to take part in international scientific initiatives while building awareness of environmental issues and sustainable development.

According to the ministry, the achievement also demonstrates the value of integrating field-based environmental science into classroom learning and encouraging teachers to lead projects within their schools and communities.

The GLOBE programme was launched in 1995 with support from NASA and other international organisations. It now operates in 127 countries and promotes environmental awareness by involving students and teachers in field monitoring and scientific data collection.

Oman joined the programme in 2009, with its implementation overseen by the Ministry of Education.

The programme has since become one of the main platforms supporting inquiry-based education and school-level scientific research in the sultanate.