Nature Conservation Margaret River Region’s youth education program Waatu Kaatijin (Ocean Learning) made a splash at Gnarabup today, turning local students into citizen scientists solving coast conservation threats.
Waatu Kaatijin is now in its third year involving three Year 5 classes from Margaret River Primary School, thanks mainly to funding from the Shire of Augusta Margaret River.
And program officer Chloe Deakin said it involved practical, hands-on learning over the school year, where the kids work with coastal and marine experts, carry out surveys, identify threats, meet with stakeholders, devise solutions, put them into practice and share the learning with the community.
The Year 5 students began their learning and hit the beach at Gnarabup, where they heard about the cultural significance of the coast from Undalup Association’s Wadandi rangers and identified local birds with Birdlife WA’s Christine Wilder. They also heard from marine scientists discussing our incredible marine life, delved into the human impacts on the Ngari Capes Marine Park with activities led by Parks and Wildlife Service marine rangers, and discussed the impacts of dogs on beaches from shire rangers.
Chloe said the students relished swapping the classroom for the beach and were fascinated to learn more about our coastline and ocean conservation.
“We’ve got a beautiful day and the kids are having a blast – I’m seeing a lot of smiles! They’re also really engaging with the presenters and taking in a lot of knowledge,” she said.
Year 5 teacher Troy Yates said Waatu Kaatijin tied in with and even accelerated the school curriculum. “To try and replicate this in the classroom would take months, and it’s not as real as being on country and connecting to our wonderful coastline, so it ticks every box,” he said.
Over the coming months, each class will adopt a particular section of the Prevelly and Gnarabup coastline and focus on a unique threat to that area.
Nature Conservation has secured funding from the Shire of Augusta Margaret River, Jock Clough Marine Foundation and Cape Mentelle to run Waatu Kaatijin for 2025 at Margaret River Primary School. But the group is still seeking sponsorship funding to boost the program and roll out to other schools across the Capes region.
“The ocean is so central to what we all love about this special part of the world, and Waatu Kaatijin is a really powerful way to engage young people to become stewards of the ocean and the coast,” Nature Conservation general manager Drew McKenzie said. “We’re asking corporate or philanthropic donors to get in touch so more local students can reap the benefits of this exciting initiative.”
