Students across East Gippsland have been given the opportunity to learn all about natural resource management with the help of wildlife and art.
The East Gippsland Catchment Management Authority (CMA) once again visited schools along with Black Snake Productions and their native animals on a roadshow of biodiversity and waterway health presentations, titled Catchment Connections with a focus this year on threatened species.
Students learnt about the work the East Gippsland CMA, along with its partners, other environmental organisations and volunteer groups, do to improve the health of local catchments.
This year the East Gippsland CMA teamed up with the East Gippsland Art Gallery.
Students were guided by the art gallery in an art class to decorate and learn about threatened species. The students will have the opportunity to showcase their artwork at an event in September to acknowledge Threatened Species Day.
Multiple volunteers helped prepare for these presentations, including the Bairnsdale Men’s Shed, who made the wooden stakes on which students’ art will be displayed.
Volunteers also chipped in to prepare the wooden animal cutouts for decorating.
The East Gippsland Landcare Network’s seedbank supplied seeds for the students to grow, with seed species selected to support the habitat of the threatened species that the students decorated.
The seeds from the seedbank are sourced by volunteers across the region.
These seeds enable revegetation of areas with indigenous species that are adapted to the region and found locally.
“East Gippsland CMA are always keen to help schools, and their students gain a deeper understanding of the environment and in this case the vital role of healthy habitats for threatened species,” East Gippsland CMA chief executive officer, Bec Hemming said.
Incorporating interactive encounters with wildlife and a hands-on art class, this program aims to instil an understanding of our
catchment’s important biodiversity while keeping the learning experience engaging and fun for students.
As part of its commitment to protecting and restoring Victoria’s waterways and catchments, this project is funded by the Victorian Government.
