Empowering Education For Sustainable Oceans

The founders of Education Perfect, Shane and Craig Smith have always sought to influence positive change. Their new focus has become the ocean, with Craig qualifying as a scuba diving instructor, and Shane developing an interest in underwater photography – experiences that have opened their eyes to the importance of sustainability in our oceans, and just how crucial it is to act before the damages are irreversible. In this article, Shane discusses the pressures on the oceans, and what we can all do to contribute to making positive changes.

It’s easy to forget, but we too are a part of this ecosystem. This means both that our actions have far-reaching consequences for our oceans, and also that what happens in our oceans has significant consequences for humanity.

Education Perfect is dedicated to providing schools and students with the resources necessary to take a proactive approach to sustainability education. We believe that educating students on the importance of sustainability is critical for creating a sustainable future. Our free lessons on sustainability cover essential topics, such as the impact of a changing climate, how to manage the Earth's resources responsibly, and the relationship between ecosystems, biodiversity, and human activity.

Animals, Oceans and Us is a free set of resources that provides a curriculum-aligned approach to educating students on key environmental issues such as animal rights and ocean conservation. These lessons encourage critical thinking and support schools' cross-curricular priorities, ensuring that sustainability is integrated into all aspects of education. These resources are designed for Years 7 - 10 across Australia and New Zealand, and affirm our commitment to making a positive impact on the environment through education. Click here to view the lessons.

As a certified B-Corp company, Education Perfect is committed to sustainability in our day-to-day practices. We prioritise environmentally friendly initiatives, such as organising tree-planting and beach clean-up events and implementing a recycling program in our global offices. Our focus on sustainability stems from our belief that education is the key to creating a more sustainable future. We are proud to be at the forefront of this work and are dedicated to working with schools and students to create a positive impact on our planet..

Empowering the next generation

School-age students today are acutely aware that the world they’re inheriting is not the world that their parents grew up in. This has led to a range of reactions, from the palpable anger expressed during the 2018 climate change protests to an ongoing background “climate anxiety”. We wanted to give students both the knowledge that they need to understand the range of issues facing our oceans, and also a set of proactive steps they can take to minimise their footprint on the oceans. To achieve this, we’ve partnered with Education Perfect along with teachers in Australia and New Zealand to deliver a set of lessons focused on Sustainable Oceans.

The lessons have three key messages:

Our oceans are amazing, extremely important to humanity, and worthy of protecting.

Our oceans are currently facing a number of specific threats.

While we can’t individually solve these problems, there are a range of simple changes that we can make to our lives to minimise our impact on them.

These lessons will be made freely available to all students in Australia and New Zealand. We will also be running a competition on Education Perfect coinciding with World Ocean Day to promote the lessons and encourage students to engage with them.
 

These lessons are our first attempt at engaging with these issues in the public domain. We’ve tried to focus on solutions rather than placing blame. We want students to walk away feeling empowered rather than thinking the situation is hopeless (which it isn’t). As with everything, a first attempt is seldom perfect and we’re sure that there will be room for improvement and iteration, so we welcome feedback on how we can make these lessons a better resource for all of our kids.
 

Our Sustainable Oceans Competition (6-8 June, 2023) is a great way to try out this content with your students. This is free to take part in and there are lots of great prizes.
 

For more information or to register for the competition, please click here.

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