Families granted rare access to Sharjah’s nature reserves

Sharjah: As many as 130 people from 21 families took part in ‘A Day in the Reserve’ programme organised by the Environment and Protected Areas Authority in Sharjah (EPAA) recently.

The initiative, which took place across four affiliated sites, was aimed at creating awareness and involving families of different nationalities in environmental and community programmes, EPAA said.

The participating families were accompanied on recreational and educational trips in the emirate of Sharjah. As part of the programme, families were introduced to Khor Kalba Mangrove Centre, Wasit Wetland Centre, Geological Park in Al Buhais, and Al Muntather Reserve.

A Day in the Reserve programme managed to achieve several goals, including educating various groups of society about the importance of nature reserves and their affiliated centres in the emirate of Sharjah, raising awareness of the importance of preserving the environment and wildlife, encouraging a culture of sustainable eco-tourism, and highlighting reserves and environmental landmarks in Sharjah. In addition, it succeeded in getting families involved in environmental and community programmes, providing both an entertaining and educational element to children’s vacation time during the winter school break.

Activities, workshops, competitions and tours

During the families’ visits to the participating reserves and centres, the authority’s teams presented several activities, educational workshops, competitions, as well as indoor and outdoor tours, with each site’s offerings tailored to their unique content.

In addition, participants were introduced to the family afforestation initiative in the Al Muntather Reserve, where they learned about different types of local perennial and non-perennial plants and the importance of these plants and their preservation.