Hosted by , contributed by Kyriaki_Vakkou on 15 September 2023
Peatland is an area of land made up of peat. Peat is a type of soil made up of dead plant remains that have not completely decayed. It forms in moist soil that is not well drained. It takes thousands of years for a large area of peat to form, layer upon layer. Although they represent only 3% of the global land surface, swamps store 30% of the total terrestrial carbon stock, more than all the forests of the planet, therefore they play a crucial role in climate regulation.
Peatlands represent half of the world's wetlands. In the vicinity of the school’s town there is a peat bog (Tinovul Saru Dornei) with an area of 20 square km, which is a natural reserve where characteristic plant and animal species can be found. Turbaria is an outdoor laboratory, which offers people the opportunity to study, investigate, protect and intervene through restoration. In this peatland, it was found that human intervention has destroyed the marsh ecosystem in recent years, by throwing a lot of garbage, digging drainage channels, in order to agriculturally exploit this area, so that certain species of plants and animals have started to decrease and even to disappear (for example the purple butterfly and the dragonfly). Hence, the school’s goal was to raise students’ awareness about this issue, while developing understanding about important concepts such as sustainability, ecosystems, biodiversity and the protection of life in wetlands, implicitly from the Tinovul Mare peat bog. From there, the students will deepen the contemporary problems that affect wetlands globally as well as the solutions that can be implemented at the planetary level but also in their community.
Students were encouraged to collaborate with their families, community members and other organizations specialized in protecting the environment, to ensure common involvement in the process of restoring the marshes (local peatlands). Initially, students used specialized websites to collect information about the characteristics of wetlands around the world and compare them with the bog area (marsh) in the Tinovul Saru Dornei area. For the latter activity, they went on a field trip with the biology professors and specialists from the Bucharest Biology Institute to the nearby peat bog, to take soil samples, specific plants, to study the degree of humidity, etc. They found that there is a lot of garbage thrown by the people in their area in the nearby turbaria. They also found that people make drainage to dry the peat and to expand their agricultural crops. This has a negative impact on the balance of the ecosystem in this wetland area.
During this project, students, along with experts and teachers, conducted investigations and different actions for helping with the sustainability of the area. For example, they dug basins to collect water and ensure a microclimate for purple butterflies and dragonflies, created fences to enclose the turbidity, dammed the canals to maintain the necessary amount of water. They extracted the trees from the central area of the marsh (especially the birch), because the birch consumes a lot of water and disturbs the hydrological balance of the bog. Slices of wood were cut from the birch trunks, on which the children paint or stick stickers. They monitored the development of life in the rabble through a comparative study, measuring certain parameters over a period of time.
Students decided to bring the problem within the community and families, to have important discussions about the causes and solutions of the problem in question. Thus, the students, together with the teachers and partner specialists, created a PowerPoint information material about the species of plants and animals in the peat bog and the role of the peat bogs (e.g., they are valuable reservoirs of biodiversity, they are wetlands with a high carbon sequestration capacity and they act as buffer zones reducing the risk of flooding in conditions of excessive precipitation).
At the same time, with the help of the experts, the students were able to identify the threats resulting from the uncontrolled intervention of people on this wet area (e.g., exploitation of peat bogs for using peat for fuel, conversion to agricultural land). Students were also encouraged to invite important stakeholders to their schools to discuss solutions to the problem.
While going through this project and following investigation-based activities, students developed fundamental skills such as teamwork, problem solving, critical thinking, communication and creativity. Through their collaboration with students from different cultures, religions and geographical backgrounds, students were able to develop tolerance, mutual respect and respect for nature. Below, some of the key skills students developed during the project are mentioned:
- Being able to document and extract the essentials of context-specific information
- Obtaining knowledge through scientific research in the field and in the laboratory
- Capitalizing on the knowledge acquired during the course in practical applications such as making leaflets, logos, posters, maps, tables, interpreting the chemical composition of water
- Identifying the concrete ways to raise funds, based on donation sheets made by them, by presenting the project and its purpose
- Acquiring project management skills, actively participating in its writing, identifying real needs of the community (properly underutilized natural areas), setting objectives, evaluating with measurable parameters
- Acquiring the skills to work in a team, to respect their opinions, to communicate with adults and social leaders, to know how to ask for help in carrying out tasks that are beyond them
- They felt that they belonged to the community and that they were valued and their work was considered
- They reflected, they implemented, they had the desire to complete their work
- Learning took place - maybe through less information - but skills and abilities were formed (to work in certain computer programs, find new creative solutions, manage time and tense situations)
- They showed empathy, care and interest in the needs of the community, practicing the transfer skills in everyday life of what they understood and learned
Students were able to develop interdisciplinary knowledge about the following concepts:
- Biology: plants, animals, microscope studio, carbon cycle, photosynthesis, etc.
- Technology: building dykes, digging a pool for water storage, thematic path
- Chemistry: water composition, plant nutrition
- Entrepreneurship: product sales, profits and losses, fixed costs, etc.
- Art: drawing the marsh purple butterfly, technical drawing
- Mathematics: calculation of the vastness of the trees in the turf, measuring distances, calculating the dimensions of the dug space - depth.
- Information technology: accessing information, creating video material, PowerPoint presentations, logos, etc.
Already implemented by the following schools
Secondary School Panaci
This practice was implemented by our school!