Primorsky Aquarium and Land of the Leopard National Park negotiate cooperation
Olga Shevchenko, Director of the Primorsky Aquarium, Viktor Bardyuk, Director of the Land of the Leopard National Park, and Maria Okulova, Deputy Director of Environmental Education and International Cooperation of the Land of the Leopard have held a working meeting at the Aquarium to discuss perspectives of cooperation between the two organizations. The Land of the Leopard National Park, which also manages the Far Eastern Marine Reserve now, is going to develop tourism on its territory and regards the Primorsky Aquarium, one of the largest scientific and educational institutions in the region, as its partner.
Olga Shevchenko, Director of the Primorsky Aquarium, proposed arranging a photo exhibition devoted to the Far Eastern Marine Reserve in a large hall at the entrance to the Dolphinarium. Furthermore, the sides preliminarily agreed to show underwater videos made in the Marine Reserve on the digital screens at the Aquarium exhibits.
“We are going to consider other issues later, too, and it is highly probable that we will eventually sign a cooperation agreement. One area of special interest for us is environmental education programs and we would be excited to know more about them. The Far Eastern Marine Reserve is a recent part of the National Park, it presents a totally new field of eco-education for us. It is a really tough task, because our specialists lack experience in marine biology. They are now in the process of gaining knowledge, reading books and scientific papers. We would highly appreciate if your professionals shared their experience,” said Maria Okulova, Deputy Director of Environmental Education and International Cooperation, the Land of the Leopard National Park.
She noted that educators from the Land of the Leopard have already been conducting programs about marine animals for school students. However, it is desirable that some of these educators receive training at the Primorsky Aquarium to be more effective in teaching ocean-related topics to children.
Olga Shevchenko suggested applying educational video lessons available on the Primorsky Aquarium website for teaching school children about the underwater world.
“You can use these educational materials for free. They are virtual lessons in the subjects like biology, ecology, world around us and English language, and they describe the variety of marine organisms and interactions between them,” said the Primorsky Aquarium Director.
The representatives of the two institutions also talked about possible themed school camps with programs in marine life, eco-friendly beach holidays, and ocean conservation and protection.
“Our mission is to educate about the sea, by which we live, and to inspire a sense of respect and stewardship for the ocean,” stressed Maria Okulova.
It should be pointed out that scientific and educational cooperation are among the main priorities of the Primorsky Aquarium. And it is a task of major importance, to instill environmental awareness and caring attitude towards nature through environmental education.