Brief examples of our educational outreach programmes

The Marine Connection funds various educational/awareness projects in various countries including the UK, Africa and Peru - bringing people and wildlife together through enjoyable and positive learning programmes.

Our project in South Africa introduced young people to a world that many were unaware of or had even seen – the marine environment. This was achieved via our educational camps which helped bring them closer to nature, and for many it was the first time they had seen a lighthouse, the ocean or a starfish. The charity also assisted with the development of a long-term educational programme in Kenya. Working with Global Vision International, the Marine Connection supplied educational materials on dolphin and whale conservation which relate to species seen regularly around the Kenyan coastline and other cetacean issues worldwide.

In Peru, approximately 33% of Pucusanas are younger than 15 years old but public schools generally can not comply with the need for environmental education as suffer permanent lack of funding and do not even have basic educational materials such as fact sheets etc. Children are the future and this is what makes projects like this one so important. Through funding an educational project, hundreds of children are much more aware about dolphins, whales and the importance of protecting them and their marine environment. Teachers also participating in the programme, received additional training to enable them to become more actively involved in environmental education.

Since 2006 the charity has conducted an important educational project in the Moray Firth area of Scotland, visiting schools, youth and adult groups hosting workshops about the marine wildlife that live in that area but to also raising awareness of the wonderful wildlife around our UK shorelines. Each session is a mix of teaching, games and activities, pitched at different levels to allow all year groups to learn about the subject. Thousands of children are now more aware of how fortunate they are in the north of Scotland to be able to encounter wild dolphins and how they can help protect them. Our educational work is specifically designed to raise awareness in order to effect a positive change.