THE University of Wales Trinity Saint David recently hosted Carmarthen Children’s Climate Conference on its campus. Organised by Carmarthen Town Council in collaboration with the university, The National Botanic Garden of Wales and Menter Gorllewin Sir Gâr, the event aimed to provide a valuable learning experience for the children.
Pupils from Ysgol y Dderwen, Ysgol Llangynnwr, Model Church in Wales School, Myrddin Primary, St Mary’s Roman Catholic School, Johnstown School, Ysgol Bro Myrddin and QE High school attended the conference. The main objective of the conference was to raise awareness among children about the current climate situation, and explore ways to address and improve it
Throughout the day, various workshops were conducted by the National Botanic Gardens of Wales, along with UWTSD’s Early Years, Childhood and Youth students and lecturers . Activities included creating ‘junk art’ from recycled materials, learning how to reduce carbon footprints and finding out how the lifecycle of a butterfly is affected by climate change.
Carmarthen’s Deputy Mayor, Cllr. Heledd ap Gwynfor said:
“I was privileged to pop into the climate conference, and what struck me was the energy and vivid interest the children had in their surroundings and their awareness of their contribution to it.
“The children were so eager to learn and to be involved. It is so important to hold such sessions so that we can all learn from each other to create a community, a country, and a better and cleaner world to live in”
Sarah Jones, from the National Botanic Garden of Wales added:
“It has been great engaging with local school children in Carmarthenshire in todays Climate Conference. It was fantastic to see the children’s eagerness for wanting to help our natural environment adapt to our changing climate. We focussed on how our changing climate is affecting the lifecycle of our butterflies and our flowering plants.
“At the National Botanic Garden of Wales conservation is at the heart of everything we do and it was great to see the children sharing our enthusiasm for this. The good news is we are able to help our butterflies and other pollinating insects by sowing wild flower seed in our school gardens, local parks and our gardens at home. The children can now head back to their local communities and share the importance of recording what we see in our environment. It was really exciting to also have the opportunity to talk about our new Heritage Lottery Funded project Plants, Past Present and Future.”
Kate Williams, Sustainability & Environment Manager for UWTSD said:
“UWTSD is deeply committed to sustainability. Hosting Carmarthen’s 2nd Children’s Climate Conference, and welcoming schools from across Carmarthen, exemplifies our dedication. Through our partnership with Carmarthen Town Council; Menter Gorllewin Sir Gar, the National Botanic Gardens, and our dedicated lecturers and students we were able to come together to create an experience that equips our young people with the knowledge and skills to address global challenges.”
