Middle school students discovering nature and their talents
The Beginning
It all began on the other side of the Atlantic, in the dry forest of Costa Rica. A millennia-old forest that came perilously close to disappearing in the late 1980s.
A forest saved by the will and work of women, men, and children who were convinced that they were an integral part of Nature. Upon returning to Europe, Sarah and Luis shared their experiences and decided to develop bio-literacy in France, in Strasbourg.
With friends and partners, they created the KINODOKA association and launched the Bioskop project in collaboration with teachers from Erasme College (REP+).
What is bio-literacy?
Sarah, producer, and Luis, director, filmed in 2020 a documentary series about Costa Rica. On this occasion, they met those who work in the Guanacaste Conservation Area (ACG), a UNESCO Natural Heritage Site, to preserve the delicate balance of lush nature.
They also discovered bio-literacy, or bio-alphabétisation in French, a method of resilience transmitted by American biologists Daniel Janzen and Winnie Hallwachs, along with their colleagues from ACG. It is a way of learning to read nature, understanding its mechanisms and interconnections to inhabit and respect it better.
A meaningful project!
In the neighborhood of Hautepierre, amidst high-rise buildings and asphalt, students are often cut off from nature. Yet… it is everywhere! Grass grows between the concrete paving stones, tree leaves flutter along the tram line, birds sing, and insects buzz. Nature is there. Discreet but very present. A few kilometers from Strasbourg, there are also preserved natural spaces: three nature reserves at the city’s doorstep, alluvial forests characteristic of the Rhine landscapes. Everything needed to discover and learn about nature, to understand it better and inhabit it more harmoniously.
The Bioskop project started in 2020 with a group of voluntary 6th-grade students. The goal: to prepare, throughout their middle school years, their own documentary about the nature that surrounds them. The same program will take place on the other side of the ocean, in Costa Rica.
Exchange, discovery, comparison, and learning to better understand our respective environments: throughout these 4 years, students will be engaged in numerous workshops focusing on nature, ecology, and audio-visual skills, discovering the characteristics of their natural surroundings. They will produce a documentary and present it at the end of the journey in Costa Rica in 2024, finally meeting each other in person!
Opening new perspectives, reconnecting with our planet, pushing boundaries… this is what motivates all the participants in the project. Perhaps inspiring new vocations, who knows?
A rewarded ambition
On the occasion of the 2nd edition of the “Entretiens de la Biodiversité du Grand Est”, organized by the Parc de Sainte-Croix and its numerous partners, the Kinodoka association was rewarded during the presentation of the regional Trophies for biodiversity, in the Youth & Biodiversity category.
We thank Parc Sainte-Croix and all its partners for their support.