This week students at Fernhurst Junior School, beach cleaned in their local area. A group of young Ocean explorers who have been taking part in an undersea exploration as part of a Fernhurst University project were armed with litter pickers to clean up their stretch of local coastline.
This junior school has a big drive and motivation to make a difference in the World and a thirst for learning about conservation and the marine environment. One staff member, Mrs Chanvin, organises litter picks in the morning on school grounds to not only clean up the premises and role model good behaviour about caring for the local area but also to practice fine motor skills when using the pickers. This reminded me of a lady called Margaret Mead who once said “Never ever depend on governments or institutions to solve any major problems. All social change comes from the passion of individuals.” Fernhurst is lucky to have such individuals on their staff team.
Inspired by the chaps over at #2minute beach clean, a growing family of beach lovers who have been rolling up their sleeves to help rid the Worlds beaches of marine litter and plastic pollution, two minutes at a time, the Students at Fernhurst decided that they wanted to get on board with some global issues and do their bit for a beach nearby. The impact of pollution globally might not have hit home to our young people just yet but it does when they see it in the towns and cities they live in and more importantly on the beaches they love to play on.
Fernhurst students strolled along Southsea beach and found all sorts of mirco plastics and admitted they were shocked at their finds. One student, Taylor said, ‘Who dropped all of this stuff? Don’t they know there is a bin just over there.’ Another, Alfie said, ‘Do we even need straws Miss?’ This was quite prolific. If an 8 year old can understand that straws are not really a necessity then that’s a big step in the right direction for our future.
Well done Fernhurst Junior School and keep up the good work.
