Environmental Education with Jessica

17 July 2023

By Jessica Noesgaard | Education Activity Coordinator

With the seasonal burst of wild weather, coastal erosion has continued to be a particularly important theme this term. Students witnessed firsthand the real-life impacts of increased extreme weather events on our coastal environment, leading to many meaningful learning opportunities and discussions. We hope these students left us with a greater appreciation for our precious coastal environments and inspired as future visitors and community members to do their part to help protect these important natural places.

Exploring Point Roadknight with the highly motivated students from Operation New Start Geelong was a particular highlight this term. The Operation Newstart program is aimed at middle school students struggling to stay in school and needing extra support. Throughout the day the group focused on building their connection to the area, including increasing their awareness of the unique biodiversity and cultural heritage values of this place.

With a positive attitude and great teamwork, the group also completed valuable conservation efforts in the area, including the removal of invasive Coast Tea-tree, brush-matting informal walking tracks to prevent further dune erosion, and removing a large section of introduced Marram grass from the beachfront. It’s always a privilege to help students connect with the environment and provide opportunities for them to physically contribute to caring for these special places.

A huge thank you to the students of Operation Newstart for all their hard work!

It was also rewarding working again with Lorne Kinder again this term. We spent the morning exploring Teddy’s Lookout, searching for as many colours as we could find on our Autumn bushwalk. We found some bush tucker along the way to nibble on and kept watch for any wildlife. As luck would have it, a swamp wallaby jumped right across our path much to the delight of the kinder kids. It was wonderful to share these experiences with the youngest members of our community and highlighted once again the power of engaging with nature at every age.