Students from Loulé were “discovering the nature around them”, as part of a Literacy project for the Forest of the League for the Protection of Nature (LPN), which involved more than 1700 students from schools from North to South of the country.
This was the second consecutive academic year in which the initiative was promoted. In 2021/22, the project achieved «an enrollment rate of more than 200% compared to the previous year» and involved students from the municipalities of Arronches, Braga, Leiria, Loulé, Maia, Sintra, Torre de Moncorvo, Torres Vedras and Vila Nova de Famalicão.
Throughout the year, the students involved benefited from «an enriching experience that associates the classroom with nature, leading them to discover and value the forests of the region where they live», according to LPN.
«The project is based on the monitoring of each class throughout practically the entire school year, through the realization of five actions: three theoretical with a strong pedagogical tendency, where the forest is presented as an ecosystem in the world and in Portugal, its biodiversity, its values, services it provides and threats; a field trip to a forest in the region to get in touch with Nature and consolidate the knowledge acquired; and a final municipal meeting to evaluate the project with the participation of all those involved», described the association.
According to Ana Sofia Ribeiro, coordinator of the Department of Environmental Awareness, Education and Training at LPN and of the Literacy for the Forest project, «the differentiating element of this project involves the continuous work with the students and making them active agents in the preservation of the local forest, whether in its identification and exploitation/discovery or even in the creation of concrete and simple actions that can be replicated by each of us».
Rúben Oliveira, a member of the National Board of the LPN, reveals, for his part, that «in the 2022-2023 school year we will present a project enriched by the opinions that came to us from all over the country».
«In addition to the module that we have been implementing, we will include a new one dedicated to the themes of loss of biodiversity, scarcity of natural resources and climate change, always based on forest ecosystems», adds the leader.
Registration for the Literacy for the Forest project for the next school year is now open and runs until September. Entities such as inter-municipal communities and municipalities can apply directly, sending their intention by e-mail to the LPN, while interested schools and teachers will have to convey their interest to municipal bodies.
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