Supporting the Laboratory on the Tiber River in Rome
Project location: Italy, Rome
Project start date: October 2010 -
Project end date: December 2010
Project number: 2010-37
Beneficiary: MAREVIVO
2010 has been declared by the United Nations ‘International Year of Biodiversity'. Marevivo wishes to participate in this initiative by educating young children from local schools on the importance of preserving biodiversity, by using the local environment as an example. The association is also celebrating 25 years of campaigning for the Sea and the environment in general. The association's main aim has always been to inform and educate the public by encouraging a better understanding of the importance of preserving the environment and biodiversity. By organizing day-trips to the association's equipped environmental education center on the Tiber river, the Association aims at educating the public (children especially) on the local ecosystem within the urban limits of the city of Rome. The objective is to raise public awareness on the importance of preserving biodiversity in general, by using the river as a practical example.
The seminars will be free of charge for students and teachers, which will enable the association to target students from low-income families in sub-urban areas, who are not normally reached by these initiatives.
This project, which received a grant from the Nando Peretti Foundation, will be aimed at students from low-income, suburban families who would not normally be in a position to attend these seminars, which will be free of charge for both students and teachers.
The encounters will take place on the Associations' ‘Tiber Laboratory', and will be managed by the environmental educators (qualified Biologists and Naturalists) who already collaborate with the Association and are familiar with managing these activities. The encounters will include a guided excursion on the river (for high school students) to promote more interactive activities, and to this end we propose the purchase of two rubber dinghies (six seats plus one qualified driver) to support the development of these activities.
Methodology:
• Identification of the appropriate schools and presentation of the initiative (with the help of the Ministry for Education).
• Organizing 10 groups of primary and middle school students to attend the seminars at the ‘Tiber Lab'.
• Purchase of two six-seat rubber dinghies and the necessary equipment (e.g. life-vests) for the excursions on the river.
• Organizing 10 groups of high school students to attend the seminars at the ‘Tiber Lab', with the excursion down the river.
The Association proposes for the Foundation to sponsor 10 encounters with primary and middle school students, and a further 10 encounters with high school students with experimental guided tours on the river using the rubber dinghies.
The maximum number of students attending each day seminar will be 30, with 2-3 teachers accompanying them and 3-4 Marevivo educators.
The initiative will be publicized by December 2010 and then again in March 2011.
The seminars will then take place between March and May 2011.
The organization aims at reaching around 600 students and 40-60 teachers directly through the day-seminars. However, once the necessary equipment (rubber dinghies etc.) has been purchased, it will be used during future day-seminars, and also for touristic purposes (the Association has already reached an agreement with tourist information centres in the city centre).
This initiative will also encourage a more regular and frequent usage of the ‘Tiber Lab', and a wider range of the beneficiaries and users of this facility.
