A first from the TEMA Foundation and Avcılar Municipality: “I discover nature” project

A first was implemented in cooperation with the TEMA Foundation, Avcılar Municipality and Avcılar District Directorate of National Education. With the “I Discover Nature Project” developed by the TEMA Foundation, for the first time in Türkiye, it is aimed to reach all schools at all educational levels and all children in a district. With the project, which left behind a successful year, the first-year goal was achieved and approximately 30,000 children were educated about nature.

With the “I Discover Nature Project”, it is aimed that children and young people at all levels, from pre-primary to high school in Avcılar district, make observations about nature, discover nature in their immediate surroundings and raise awareness about biodiversity. The project is of great importance with the aim of reaching all children within the borders of a district municipality for the first time in Türkiye.

30,000 children reached in the first year of the project

In the project, which was carried out with the support of volunteer teachers, a teacher's guide, observation brochure, observation table and a poster with Avcılar district map was designed for pre-primary and primary school levels. In the first stage of the activities, the children learned how to observe nature and what to pay attention to when observing butterflies, trees, birds, insects and soil. Later, the children, who were introduced to the concept of biological diversity, made observations in nature using the observation brochure and observation table given to them. The children, who had the opportunity to experience what they learned in their immediate surroundings, showed their nature observations by marking and illustrating their nature observations on the Avcılar map, as the last step of the project. The project, which was implemented in the 2021-2022 academic year, left behind a successful year at the pre-primary and primary school levels, allowing approximately 30,000 children to get nature education in 1,041 classrooms targeted for the first year in Avcılar district.

“We are happy to reach more children through nature education”

Ms. Deniz Ataç, Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the TEMA Foundation, talked about the first year of the project and said, “As the TEMA Foundation, we attach great importance to our education activities, and we take various actions in order to raise the awareness of living in harmony with nature among children and young people at an early age. Thanks to the ‘I Discover Nature Project’, which we carry out in collaboration with Avcılar Municipality, we provide nature education in all schools within the borders of a district for the first time in Türkiye. The project achieved very successful results in the one-year period between September 2021 and August 2022, enabling us to reach thousands of children. We are happy to reach more children with nature education. I believe that the project will continue successfully in the new period. We would like to thank Avcılar Municipality and Avcılar District Directorate of National Education for their support.”

“We are aware of the importance of our children who will build our future”

Avcılar Mayor Turan Hançerli said, “As Avcılar Municipality, we aim to create a better-quality living space for all living things in our district. We are aware of the importance of our children who will build our future. For this reason, we implement the ‘I Discover Nature Project’ with the TEMA Foundation, and we contribute to the nature education of all our children from pre-primary to high school in Avcılar district. Thus, starting from our beautiful district, our children have the opportunity to get to know nature more closely and build awareness about the environment. We are proud to have successfully completed the first year of the project. We are confident that this success will continue in the second year as well. We would like to thank the TEMA Foundation, which is the first foundation that comes to mind regarding environmental and nature awareness in Türkiye, and Avcılar District Directorate of National Education for their collaboration.”

Lower secondary and upper secondary students will be reached in the second year of the project

A new education program suitable for age groups has been developed for the project, which will continue its second year at lower and upper secondary levels in the 2022-2023 academic year. A teacher's guide, observation table and brochure, and a poster with Avcılar district map was developed for the activities to be implemented in lower and upper secondary schools. With the education they will receive within the scope of the project, children will also learn step by step how to identify the types of trees around them and will be able to create observation maps.

We are raising hope!                                                                         TEMA Foundation