This is a three-day project (either onsite or outreach) where students will take part in the Crucial Conservation workshop, participating in activities and discussions to engage them in learning about threats wild cats face. Students will then work in groups to design a conservation programme which both conserves a threatened cat species and provides economic benefit for the region. Students will create a presentation proposal explaining their chosen conservation project and create a social media campaign that highlights the plight of their chosen cat species. A presentation of all the projects and media campaigns will round off the sessions with all involved receiving a certificate.
Time permitting, other complementary workshops can be added.
Taking part in the conservation project will give students valuable skills, knowledge and opportunities to enhance their learning content and can be used as experience on UCAS applications or CVs. We hope to provide an inspiring opportunity for students to really engage with conservation and to develop a wide range of skills. Taking part in the Conserve to Preserve Project deepens a connection with nature and develops a broader understanding of the challenges conservationists face.
Students learn about the importance of biodiversity and the need for conservation, the fine balance of an ecosystem, the impacts of human activity, and the economic benefits and services an ecosystem can provide.
Students will learn about the different types of conservation and the pros and cons of these.
- Researching
- Discussion
- Presenting
- Critical thinking
- Problem finding
- Problem solving
- Time management and planning
- Community engagement
- Creative thinking
- Cultural understanding
- Entrepreneurship
- Leadership
- Ethical behaviour
- Asking questions
- Teamwork
- Digital literacy
- Communicating
- Empathy
- Global Citizenship
- Negotiating ideas
- Checking understanding
The project will consist of 4 hours a day split into approximately 4 hour long sessions with an hour for lunch in the middle. E.g. 10:00am-12:00pm sessions 1 and 2.
Suitable for Year 11+ students.
If you would like more information on taking part in the Conserve to Preserve Project, please contact education@thebigcatsanctuary.org
What do staff and students who have taken part have to say?
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“The students put the project days and visit days as their highlight of the year!” – Teacher, MidKent College
“We have been absolutely thrilled with the success of our Big Cat Week, run in partnership with the Big Cat Sanctuary, KAMCOP and Uni Connect. We designed this to build employability skills in our students and motivate them to focus on their next steps. I knew this would be a hit, but I never quite expected the progress we saw in our students within such a short space of time.” – Teacher, Hadlow College
“It was a great time, would definitely recommend to other schools.”- Student
“I thought the project was eye-opening and engaging and allowed me to expand my knowledge in general” – Student
“It was really interesting to learn about the different cat species and the threats they face” – Student