Back to School!

Permaculture education to 550 students across different schools! That’s how we kicked off our 2023. Here is how we focused on school programmes the past three months…

• Students Reached: 550
• Schools Engaged: 2
• Workshops Delivered: 22
• Themes: Soil building, composting, vermicomposting, bug biodiversity in urban spaces.

With Covid and the restrictions that came with it firmly behind us, we revived our permaculture education practice. During the pandemic, while we continued to engage students and schools in various ways, the inability to enter schools definitely impacted the way we delivered programmes. This year, we could finally make some real impact since we were able to get back into the classrooms and school gardens running our hands-on engagement activities.

With much energy and eagerness to learn, students and children often inspire us to continue our journey of making an eco-positive difference one classroom at a time. We ran three significant programs in the last two months. We make it a point to avoid one-off green programmes in schools. We enter schools with the openness to provide an on-going engsgement and educational effort covering multiple aspects of sustainable and permaculture inspired learning experiences.

Here's a summary of three programs that were delivered in the first quarter of 2023.

An introduction to permaculture through soil building

We ran this session across the Primary 1 cohort of an international school in Singapore. The students were fascinated to learn that they could build their own healthy soil with everyday materials and organic waste easily available to them. We enjoyed running the hands-on sessions with enthusiastic kids as they built soil in raised planter beds at school. They also got to understand the role of earthworms in the soil building process. While observing earthworms, students learnt about the physiology, eating habits and the very important task worms play in aerating and building nourished soil.

Next month we return to the same students and observe the soil they’ve built and continue the journey of growing food and enjoying the harvest with them.

Nova showing children the components of good soil

Friend or Foe?

This workshop was conducted at a public local school in Singapore with entomologist and bug enthusiast James Khoo to introduce the biodiversity of bug life in Singapore and its importance in our society. The entire Primary 3 cohort participated in this workshop. As always, bugs are superstars to children. The students were delighted to engage with bugs close up and enthralled to learn that there was biodiversity even in small green spaces.

A visit to their garden (a biodiversity learnscape that we have created for them on their premises in 2019) opened their eyes to the number of species that exist even in a small urban garden.

James showing the students a beetle larvae

Working with Worms

We’ve found the most impact when we work with students on an ongoing basis. For three years we’ve worked with the Gaia Club students at Anderson Primary. Students in this club have become not only aware but competent in kick starting the worm composting stations in their school. They reset the compost bins, create awareness about vermicomposting and welcome other classes to use the bins. We’ve also helped them harvest the vermicompost. They are now abuzz with business ideas of how to cash in on the huge bounty of black gold they have created. Earthcare by reducing waste, growing herbs, creating compost for the school grounds and learning to dream up sustainable business ideas so early on! This is what ongoing permaculture education yields.

Black gold! A.k.a vermicompost

As we continue our journey with these students, we are very excited that they can now make their way to the Goodman Community Farm to see how a real urban farm works. Our hope is that they become more attuned to living a hands-on, eco-friendly life with self-care, earth care innovation and closed loop communities at the forefront of their minds as they navigate the day-to-day challenges of living in a busy urban city.

To learn more about these workshops or a farm experience for your students head on over to our SustainableSTEAM Services page.

Priya Mahesh

Growing up in urban India, Priya had a typical upbringing with focus on academics, some sports and loads of happy family meals. Having chosen her field in finance, Priya found her footing in the big exciting world of investment and finance until she moved to Singapore and had her two beautiful girls. Today, she balances her time between her home life and being the Chief Community Builder and Chief of Operations at Cultivate Central. When she is not working, you will find Priya plugged into her earphones listening to music, playing with her girls who she feels are growing too fast, reading the latest fiction book in the market or entertaining friends with plenty of food to go around!

How did Priya go from finance to worms? Read more about her journey here.