Glenveagh National Park has teamed up with Oscar-nominated animation company Cartoon Saloon to bring a bit of Puffin Rock magic to Donegal.
Schools across Donegal are being invited to the Puffin Rock Habitats exhibition, based on Cartoon Saloon’s much loved Puffin Rock series with the ambition to inspire a sense of wonder and improve “nature literacy” among families with young children.
The free exhibition opens on Monday 11th November as part of an all-Island tour and will be in place until the end of January 2025.
The general public can visit the exhibit from Saturdays – Tuesdays from 9.30pm – 4pm.
Through characters including young puffins Oona and Baba, Marvin the otter and Bernie the hermit crab, audiences are invited to listen to underwater communications, observe the rhythm of changes in tidal areas, learn about the role of pollinators in grasslands and explore the composition of wetlands.
Families are also encouraged to become ‘Puffin Rock Nature Heroes’ by going on to learn more about each habitat through some of Ireland’s existing biodiversity initiatives including the National Biodiversity Data Centre and the All-Ireland Pollinator Plan.
The exhibition is accompanied by workshops devised by marine biologist Tasneem Khan, to support the touring venues in activating the exhibition as a learning tool for their communities.
The exhibition and workshops are also accompanied by a beautifully illustrated workbook of nature-based activities for children written by Juanita Browne which has been distributed for free to all primary schools.
Glenveagh National Park will host a series of workshops that are targeted at schools within or close to the Park and the wider Cloghernagore Bog and Glenveagh National Park Special Area of Conservation. In addition, the Parks Nature Education Team will be running a series of family orientated workshops in conjunction with Christmas events.
Regional Manager Glenveagh National Park Emmett Johnston said: “Our Nature Education Team continuously work to raise awareness, understanding and appreciation of nature in Glenveagh National Park and wider Donegal area. To that end, we are delighted to host this inspirational exhibition and I am confident it will support us in our mission to deliver an internationally recognised standard of nature education into the heart of Donegal’s rural communities.”
For information on the exhibit in Glenveagh go to https://www.nationalparks.
The exhibition was one of 24 projects selected for the Creative Climate Action Spark Fund in 2023, an initiative from the Creative Ireland Programme funded by the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media in collaboration with the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications, to pilot new ideas for public engagement in sustainability and climate change at a local, community level.
The exhibit and workshops are also supported by Donegal County Council Heritage and Biodiversity Officers, bringing together additional expert facilitators David and Cat McCann from the Sea Collective to work with Glenveagh’s Education staff.
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