ENVIRONMENTALLY minded students from International School Aberdeen (ISA) have won a regional schools’ climate change competition by creating their visions for a future sustainable community.
The Primary 4-6 students from ISA’s Sustainability Club created a 3D Eco-Island as part of a COP26 competition to design a carbon zero world in 2030. The students worked together to create their vision of a green community and narrated a short video to describe their design.
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The competition, entitled Our Sustainable Community in 2030, is an initiative by NESCAN (North-East Scotland Climate Action Network) that encouraged entries from Primary and Secondary school pupils across the North-East.
Four ISA Grade 7 (S2) students also won in the Secondary School category with their digital creation – a Minecraft video entitled “Our Sustainable City”.
Students were asked to design a piece of work that would demonstrate what their ideal sustainable place to live, work and play would look like in 10 years’ time. Entries were invited in various forms including drawings, 3D models, songs, poems and video messages.
The students were asked to think about a broad range of issues including how people will travel in 2030 and how buildings are designed, as well as what kind of shops there might be, how food is grown and what nature might look like.
Lulu Davies, ISA Elementary Teacher and Sustainability Club Co-Leader, said every student brought something different to the Eco-Island, “I’m incredibly proud of our students who each contributed their own ideas on issues they are interested in from hydrogen and clean energy to recycling and composting initiatives.
“This project was very much student-led and they all did an amazing job. The project has taught our young people about how the choices they make today can impact their future – it really got them asking the question – what kind of life do we deserve?”
According to a recent report by the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) climate scientists report the world has just 10 years to cap global warming at 1.5C.
Fabiana Pereira, ISA’s Science and Technology teacher, said she was most proud of her students’ awareness of the climate change movement.
“It’s so important to demonstrate to our students that they have a voice and that their ideas and views will be heard by those in charge,” said Fabiana.
“I am delighted that our students’ creativity and hard work has paid off and I look forward to ISA being represented at COP26.”
Alison Stuart, Director, Aberdeen Climate Action, said the project was designed to encourage the students to visualise the big changes that are coming, “The entries from both ISA Primary and Secondary pupils showed a very good understanding of climate change issues and how they will affect our future communities. The level of presentation was excellent and we’d like to congratulate everyone involved.
“It is just fantastic to see how much understanding of the issues that young people have. Government and business would do well to listen and learn from them!”
The ISA winning videos will form part of Aberdeen Climate Action’s display at COP26 featuring messages from the region’s young people on climate change.
The competition winners will receive a certificate and the ISA library will receive a copy of Kids Fight Climate Change: How to be a #2minute Superhero by Martin Dorey.
COP26, the global intergovernmental climate conference, is currently taking place in Glasgow until November 12th.
