In collaboration with Blacks in Marine Science (BIMS), the Gambia Ocean Heroes (GOH) team conducted an outreach activity at Maahad Senior Secondary School in Brikama, to educate and expose students to marine science, the marine ecosystem, and environmental monitoring techniques in supporting long-term socio-ecological research, development, and management in The Gambia. This activity had three (3) stations that carried out aquatic, terrestrial, and food pyramid exercises.
At the aquatic station, students learned about the three aquatic systems in The Gambia; marine, brackish, and freshwater. Experiments were carried out to test variables in a watershed so students can discover the differences between the three aquatic systems and the organisms found in each environment. The terrestrial station introduced students to the climatic and physical components of environmental monitoring, and the relationship between humans and the environment. The students learned how to differentiate between normal and dangerous reading in the case of extreme weather conditions. The final station was the marine food pyramid game where students learned about the difference between a food pyramid, a food chain, and a food web. To test the knowledge received, images of marine organisms were displayed for groups to arrange according to the trophic levels and ecological energy flow.
The school outreach successfully introduced the students to marine science, raised social awareness on the sensitivity of marine ecosystems to external factors, and triggered the curiosity of students to Dive into Marine Science! Thanks to Blacks in Marine Science for sponsoring the activity.
~Momodou “Jasseh” Faal
