Earlier this year, SLTP partner Baavan teamed up with the Sanctuary Nature Foundation to conduct the Kids for Tigers programme for students living around Panna Tiger Reserve.
More than 900+ students across 20 schools participated in this 3 month long program which was well received by the students and teachers alike.
The Kids for Tigers programme was delivered with the help of slide shows, environment leadership workshops for teachers, nature trails, nature camps and a tiger festival.
A leaf painting session for the students
All of these activities aimed at spreading knowledge and awareness among students about their surrounding forests and wildlife harbored within them, with a specific emphasis on the need to conserve them.
Through slide shows, nature trails and nature camps, students learned more about the local birds, the importance of local trees, the tiger relocation project in Panna, and the role of honeybees and pollination among various other topics.
Similarly, with the help of environment leadership workshops, local school teachers learned about nature and wildlife conservation along with climate change.
Lastly, a Tiger Festival was organized for the students, teachers, and larger community which included various activities and a play centered around the topic of plastic pollution.
Nature trails organised as a part of the programme
Speaking about the learnings from the program, Dileep Ahirwar, Conservation Officer at Baavan mentioned, “These programs are unique as everyone including the larger community gets an opportunity to engage unlike conventional nature education programs aimed only towards students. For the first time, students got an opportunity to sit side by side with their teachers and learn. In fact, during the programme, the students also got a platform to share their knowledge about nature with others.”
Going ahead, Dileep mentions that the team plans to broaden the scope of the programme to include more students and activities based on the positive response that they have received this year.