Argonauta’s eco-patrols have started at the Vodice Elementary School.
On February 5, 2022, in the Primary School of Vodice, as part of the implementation of the project “Kornati – it is important to know about the sea 6” the first workshop “How hard are we trampling our planet?” was held. The aim of today’s workshop was to create a pleasant and stimulating atmosphere for work and learn about sustainable development through non-formal methods of education.
In order for the students to get to know each other and develop trust in each other, we played a “friendship ball” game. We learned the importance of teamwork and found that it is possible to pass the ball from person to person in a short period of time without it falling. The students liked the game so much that we repeated it at the end of the workshop!
Through another activity and with the help of felt-tip pens, we discovered strategies about proper resource management. At the beginning of the so-called sustainability simulations in which green and blue markers represented renewable resources, students picked up all markers and, as demonstrated representations, did not provide enough resources for living. After talking and explaining what green and blue markers represent, they changed their strategy and took care of renewable resources! Through the third activity, we were introduced to the concept of “Environmental Debt Day” and were amazed by the fact that it is earlier every year: in 2021, that day was July 29! We have learned that this is not a happy day for planet Earth and that we do not want to borrow resources from next year! We soon started to calculate the environmentally imprinted group – we went through the questions and found that as a group we consume 3.5 planets through the categories: FOOD, TRANSPORT, AND ACCOMMODATION! We were amazed by the fact that we need so many planets to meet our needs and concluded that we need to do something about it. We gave suggestions on how to behave better towards the nature that surrounds us and found out what we can do to be better. Before talking and reflecting on previous activities, we divided into three groups and defined three problems during the tourist season – GARBAGE, UNCONTROLLED CONSTRUCTION, TRANSPORT and for each category determined the consequences – destruction of living beings, polluted air, traffic jams, deforestation, pollution of the sea and sea creatures (microplastics) – the wheel of consequences. Each group presented their work to others, and through the activity, we learned that the wheel of consequences can be properly directed and that change is possible.
To round out the topic “How hard are we trampling our planet?” we all discussed everything we learned through the activities and determined the rules of conduct of Argonauta Eco-patrol:
- Walk at least 3 km a day!
- Use the bike more!
- Recycle!
- Use local fruits and vegetables!
- Don’t throw garbage!
- Use more renewable energy!
At the end of the workshop, we wrote messages in which we addressed ourselves in 30 years! The messages remained secret, they were put in a bottle and buried in the schoolyard!! And what will await us in 30 years and how many messages will surprise us, bring a smile to our faces; we will have to wait…
The project holder is the Association for Nature and Environmental Protection and Promotion of Sustainable Development Argonauta. The project partners are the Municipality of Murter-Kornati, Kornati National Park, Spužvica Tisno Kindergarten, Šubićevac Center for Education, Aurora Association, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Zagreb, and Elementary school Vodice. The project is co-financed by the Ministry of Science and Education.
