Learners of 18 schools in the country have been supported by Sun International in a two-year partnership with the Wildlife and Environment Society of South Africa (Wessa) as they create eco-classrooms to build environmental resilience at schools and in their communities.
The hotel group donated just over a million rand to support the programme in schools in areas surrounding their properties – Worcester’s Golden Valley hotel and casino, Cape Town’s GrandWest hotel and casino, Bloemfontein’s Windmill Casino, Gauteng’s Central Office and Carnival City, Pretoria’s Time Square, Durban’s Sibaya Casino and the South Coast’s Wild Coast Sun resort.
The programme, which started in August and runs until July 2023, and involves more than 450 learners from Grade 6 to 10.
“Learners who understand the science, impacts and solutions are better prepared to deal with the climate crisis and advocate for mitigation and adaptation policies at local and national level,” said Wessa senior project manager Nomfundo Ndlovu.
The society is one of South Africa’s biggest independent non-profit organisations, founded in 1926.
“Sun International’s eco-schools project will support schools with the creation of eco-classrooms where learners, teachers and school leadership will use the eco-schools seven steps framework to chart a way to building resilience in their schools and communities,” said Sun International’s services engagement director manager Heidi Edson.
These steps include writing in an eco-code, forming an eco-committee, doing an environmental review, developing an action plan, monitoring and evaluating a project, linking the project to the curriculum, and inform and involve others.
According to Edson, schools such as Bo-Doorn River Primary School, have completed their environmental review and are now in the process of addressing the environmental issues and solutions through the project.
She said: “The learners will gain a lot from participating in the programme, from science learnings to values, knowledge about plants and animals, human and environmental health, to practical skills such as learning how to separate recycling and how to plant indigenous plants.”
Also, soft skills acquired from such a programme include self-confidence, leadership abilities, critical thinking and the will to act and advocate.
Teachers at the schools Sun International is supporting, including the Bo-Doorn River school, are also provided with support through teacher hubs, where they come together to share their expertise and collaborate with like-minded professionals.
