MEP Maria Walsh, launches the EU BlueLightS programme in Ireland

MEP Maria Walsh, has this week launched the EU BlueLightS programme in Ireland funded by the EU Horizon Europe,  at the Marine Institute, with schools around Ireland - bringing the blue (ocean, rivers, and lakes) into classrooms.

Congratulating Camden Education and the Marine Institute on this collaboration MEP Walsh highlighted the importance of bringing sciences, communications and creativity together to share key messages about climate change and well-being with the wider community.

“It is wonderful to see the BlueLightS / Explorers Innovative projects providing schools with an opportunity to develop their skills in design, communications and creativity by introducing climate change topics into the curriculum.  

Using the arts and story-telling is an excellent way to share key messages about climate change. Showing how marine science can support climate solutions is a fun and engaging way to create and share solutions at a community level”, MEP Walsh added.

As part of the launch of BlueLightS in Ireland, two schools:  Kilglass National School, Galway and Brittas Bay Mixed National School, Wicklow, have recently been awarded funding for the EU BlueLightS Challenge.  Schools from Limerick, Dublin and Cork have also been included in receiving support from the BlueLightS / Explorers team in facilitating projects where the students will be using the recently launched Explorers Climate Change Superhero educational resources.

It is a brilliant achievement for these schools to be selected. They will be among 32 other schools across Europe who that will also be completing their own projects raising awareness about the "blue" (rivers and the ocean) being included on the curriculum this year,” added MEP Walsh

The EU BlueLightS/Explorers Innovative project includes completing an all-school project that facilitates reaching out to their wider community to engage in a conversation about the health of their ocean and rivers and incorporating marine themes on the curriculum. 

Welcoming MEP Walsh to the Marine Institute, Ms Patricia Orme, Director of Corporate Services, said “The Marine Institute have been working with primary schools for nearly 20 years through the Explorers Education Programme and we welcome the opportunity to support the BlueLightS project with the recent development of the Explorers Climate Change modules”.  

Ms Orme added “Providing children and schools with an opportunity to learn about the ships we use for research, monitoring of the health of the ocean through our lab work, and learning about how marine animals are impacted by climate change is important for all of us.  It helps us engage with communities and improve our understanding of our impact on the ocean – and to understand how the ocean impacts our lives”.

The primary school classes that take part in the project will work with the Explorers outreach teams and BlueLightS team where they will tell their climate stories through the arts and creative writing.  A special book will be created showcasing a selection of the children's creative work and later presented to the schools and key stakeholders across Europe. 

Bernard Kirk, CEO of Camden Education, further highlighted that the collaboration with the Marine Institute is transforming how we teach climate change and sustainability. “By providing teachers with real-life marine examples and resources that align with the new primary school curriculum and the secondary school climate change subject, BlueLightS helps students develop a deeper understanding of these crucial topics. This helps build a foundation for a generation committed to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and addressing the impacts of climate change.”

Primary schools are invited to apply to have a class participate in the EU BlueLightS/Explorers Innovative pilot project, by contacting the Explorers team. The schools selected will have an Explorers team member visit their class and assist in the delivery of the module.  

 BlueLightS is an EU Horizon Europe project that brings together 16 partners from across Europe to strengthen the skills and competencies of European children and youth to deliver “blue” (river and seas) resilience and sustainability. The project is directly aligned with and contributes to the EU Mission ‘Restore our oceans and water by 2030’.

The Explorers Education Programme is funded by the Marine Institute, Ireland’s State agency for marine research and development, and managed by Camden Education and Galway Atlantaquaria.

ENDS

 

For more information, please contact:
Cushla Dromgool-Regan
Strategic Education and Communications Manager
(Marine Institute's Explorers Education Programme)

Mobile: + 353 (0) 87 9185519
Email: cushla.dromgoolregan@thecamdentrust.org
Website: www.explorers.ie