This podcast is the outcome of our media literacy and environmental sustainability school project, during which we followed the all the steps of conducting environmental research, through the eyes of a journalist. We had designed our project based on specific targets of Sustainable Development Goal 15: Life on Land.
Our main goal was to find ways to boost bee populations, while protecting, restoring and promoting the sustainable use of our local land-based ecosystems, like our gardens, local forest and mountain.
Specifically, we started observing those ecosystems and realised that even though our school is located in a forest and is in close vicinity to a mountain with a long-standing connection to bees and honey, mountain Hymettus, we didn’t see any bees around us.
For that reason we asked ourselves: What can we do to bring back our friends, the bees? Of course, to take care of their homes on land. We collected information about the prior state of our local mountain and found out that its ecosystem had been degraded due to wildfires and urban infrastructure. We also realised that our school’s forest is the natural extention of that mountain’s landscape, being one of the few forests left in our area.
Based on that, we interviewed experts about ways to restore a forest ecosystem and our gardens, so that we protect and increase the local bee populations, without disrupting their balance.
After cleaning our forest, we replanted bee-friendly plants that already existed there (target 15.5 and 15.2 of Sustainable Development Goal 15) and to sustain their growth we have planned a collaboration with an environmental NGO to help us expand our mission (15.9-local planning). Last but not least, we made bee hotels and, after studying the ecosystem of our gardens, we placed them there (15.5).
When we protect bees, we protect life on land-and when protect life on land, we help bees thrive. That means, a better future for everyone!
You can listen to the podcast here https://vimeo.com/1073831579?share=copy
Hellenic-American Educational Foundation-
Athens College Elementary School
