DUBAI Four students and a teacher will cycle on their gym bikes in the foyer of the Dubai British School (DBS) to cover 6,000km over four days from April 26 to help raise funds for a research project.
DBS Principal Mark Ford said the idea behind the exercise is to cover the equivalent distance from Dubai to South Africa to raise funds for an expedition the team is planning in the Kruger National Park and Sodwana Bay during summer.
Sustain ecosystems
“They will be spending two weeks collecting data and working with local communities in South Africa to manage and sustain ecosystems,” he said. “DBS will be the first school from Dubai to be teaming up with professors and undergraduate students on such a research project in South Africa.”
The team includes Grade six students Samantha Jones, Cameron Murray, Elizabeth Keily and Pratyusha Majumder, aged 16-18 and studying A levels. Accompanying them will be Geography teacher David Wright. Ford said the first week of the expedition will be about helping conservation efforts in Africa and developing sustainable approaches. It will cover three projects to quantify the impact of elephants and sustainable control of their numbers; to assist in data collection on the distribution of large herbivores and predators; and to gather evidence of bird communities and structures.
The second week will be spent on an Indian Ocean reef ecology course in Sodwana Bay, with the aim of identifying coral reef biodiversity and possible new species to helping protect the local communities. Ford said: “The expedition is an opportunity to make an essential difference to ecosystems, local communities and to South Africa. It is clear, what happens in Africa over the next few years will determine the future of species on the planet and therefore directly affect humans. The pupils are determined to make a difference and bring their experiences back to Dubai to educate and inspire others.”
