More than 20 primary schools in 14 coastal counties around Ireland have been selected to complete Healthy Ocean projects to be in with a chance of winning a Marine Institute Explorers Ocean Champion Award.
This award is part of the Explorers Education Programme, which provides teachers and children with the tools necessary to develop a project within their school and community.
Healthy Ocean projects focus on supporting the primary school curriculum and creating positive actions to raise awareness and engagement about the ocean in the schools and their local communities.
“We are delighted with the number of schools that are taking part in the Explorers Healthy Ocean project module that is being delivered by the Explorers teams around Ireland,” said Cushla Dromgool-Regan of the Explorers Education Programme and Camden Education Trust.
“The schools working with the Explorers outreach centres will be learning about the ocean and how to take action to improve ocean health.”
The Explorers teams and schools will be working on the healthy ocean projects over the next term where they will be able to select one of three categories to focus on.
The first category includes incorporating a marine theme into a science, technology, engineering, arts and maths (STEAM) project.
The second category includes developing an ocean literacy Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) creative project which addresses an SDG. This may be based on SDG topics such as climate change, wellness and life underwater.
The final category is providing teachers and students an opportunity to complete a project outdoors, ranging from creating outdoor sculptures to beach cleans.
This is the first year of the Ocean Champions Awards, and submissions will be judged by a team of marine and education experts. The winners will receive a Marine Institute Explorers Ocean Champion Award for their school. Winners will be announced around World Ocean Day on Wednesday 8 June.
There are some places still available for schools to take part in the Ocean Champions Awards. For more information, see Explorers School Projects on the Explorers Education Programme at www.explorers.ie.