The conservation and protection of natural ecosystems and biodiversity in general are an important factor for the economic, social and cultural sustainability of a place, as well as a basic prerequisite for the good health and well-being of people. The COVID-19 pandemic has re-established the link between biodiversity and human health, highlighting the need to conserve nature and biodiversity as key components for building more resilient and healthy societies.
Education as the means to create environmentally literate citizens has an important role to play, from early childhood and throughout life, in halting the degradation of biodiversity and fostering values of respect, care and well-being of every living organism on this planet.
With the above in mind, the purpose of this book is to help deconstruct the stereotypes that exist in our country about certain animal species, while at the same time seeking to build new knowledge and cultivate positive attitudes towards them.
By choosing six "misunderstood" species of animals living in Cyprus, the human bird, the spider, the fox, the bat, the snake, the hedgehog, the book "Myths or Truths", based on the question of myths or truths, attempts through short texts framed by a highly descriptive illustration, but also a series of creative educational activities to help young and old alike in removing prevailing distortions and misconceptions that prevail in relation to them, while aiming to respect and protect them. The book has been given to all students in grades 2, 3 and 4 of primary school, which corresponds to more than 30,000 students. However, its aim is to be a useful recreational and educational aid for all of us, since through its pages, young and old alike can learn in a playful way, a lot of useful information about these animals of our land, about which the majority of people have too many misconceptions.
This book is part of the broader policy of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports and Youth to strengthen the environmental education of our country's children, as a key priority of our educational system and has been prepared by the Unit of Education for the Environment and Sustainable Development of the Ministry of Education and Culture with the cooperation of the Forestry Department of the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment.
It should be noted that this publication is one of the many publications of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports and Youth for the promotion of environmental and sustainability issues. At present, the Ministry has published more than 15 books on biodiversity, food waste, waste, water, production and consumption, and forests. All educational materials have been designed to support the teacher and the student in addressing environmental and sustainability issues both within the school and in external learning environments. We hope that this publication will enhance and contribute to raising awareness among young and old alike for the protection of our local fauna.
At the same time, I would like to inform you that as part of the Ministry's plans to empower students on the sustainability goals of the United Nations 2030 global agenda, the Ministry is in the process of publishing, by the Environment and Sustainable Development Education Unit, 17 new books on sustainability goals under the title "Sustainability Goals Travel". A comprehensive work, which has been awarded by the European Union as an example of excellence and quality and is a collaboration between the Ministry and the Commissioner for Citizenship. You will also have the opportunity to find out about this publication, which is planned to be distributed to schools in November 2022.
In conclusion, I would like to stress that the issues of the environment and sustainable development concern us all. Their complexity and systemic nature require interdisciplinary cooperation and joint efforts from all parties involved. I congratulate those who worked for the production of the book, noting that the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources is planning its republication.
(NΓ/ΣΧ)
Contents of this article including associated images are owned by PIO
Views & opinions expressed are those of the author and/or PIO
Source
