Environmental Education

Successful marine conservation is about mobilising people. It requires raising awareness about the marine environment, the threats that it faces, and the connections to community well-being and livelihoods.

At MantaWatch, we believe that the foundations of environmental responsibility are formed at a young age.

MantaWatch is developing and delivering children’s environmental education programs. Our programs use manta rays and marine systems as case studies to explore wider conservation and environmental issues.

MantaWatch has supported the development of 15 children’s libraries in remote areas of Flores, Indonesia, providing books about wildlife, the environment and human interactions. We have delivered environmental education programs to children visiting these libraries, as well as to disadvantaged children in urban areas.

Key elements of our environmental education programs include:

• Supplying books about wildlife, the environment, and human interactions.
• Developing and providing visual materials, including posters and videos, that introduce children to the species and processes of the marine world.
• Developing and sourcing engaging games and activities that incorporate environmental learning.
• Sponsoring and coordinating field trips to enable children to learn in the natural classroom.
• Supporting teacher development and access to teaching resources.

A central theme of our environmental education programs is that they stimulate engagement rather than rote learning.

Through our environmental education programs, we aim to nurture children’s knowledge and understanding of their local marine environment, its ecology and biology, threats and sustainable opportunities, and connections to community well-being. We aim to provide children with the foundations to help their communities to find their own solutions and adaptations in our changing world.