Savingbirds, frogs, sharks
October 1, 2011, Saturday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
ZHU Qiong teaches what might be called "Save the Planet 101" to primary school students who learn about turning off the lights, sorting the garbage and not eating shark's fin soup.
Students spread the word to their friends and parents, whose habits are harder to change. But it's a start.
Some students decided not to eat frogs after they realized that frogs eat insects and are an important part of the eco-system.
Zhu teaches mathematics and biology at Zhuanqiao Primary School in Minhang District. He was one of the 70 winners nationwide of the 2010 Subaru Ecological Protection Award. He has been an activist in the conservation movement since 1998.
As a member of the city's wildlife conservation association, Zhu spends some of his spare time monitoring illegal wildlife sales. He frequently visits wet markets. When he sees vendors selling sparrows, other birds, frogs and animals, he informs local wildlife protection stations. Sometimes the sales are stopped.
Selling wildlife tarnishes Shanghai's image, Zhu said.
"The importance of protecting the environment and wildlife should be cultivated in childhood and these lessons will accompany people throughout life," he said.
Zhu doesn't deliver dull lectures but organizes fun, hands-on activities and field trips. Every year there's an animal of the Chinese zodiac campaign - this year it's rabbits for the Year of the Rabbit.
"On one hand, we should protect rabbits, on the other hand, we also explain concepts of species invasion, like the rabbit invasion in Australia," Zhu said. Children learn the part rabbits play in the eco-system. They take quizzes and win prizes for correct answers. There are giant costumed rabbits and exhibitions of traditional paper-cutting featuring rabbits.
In 1998, he launched his first "Save the Tiger" campaign to mark the Year of the Tiger. It was so successful that he launched similar animal protection campaigns.
In spring students learned about protecting birds and why they are so important to the eco-system. In Shanghai there are 482 known species of birds, and Zhu taught students how to recognize 60 of them. Students learned why locals shouldn't trap and eat birds. They staged a musical performance related to birds and signed a 10-meter-long scroll, pledging to protect birds. Afterward they wrote essays about birds.
Zhu has also explained the importance of protecting the oceans, sharks, turtles, frogs and pandas. After a frog event, many students signed a pledge never to eat the amphibians and some students, such as fifth-grader Yue Liang, urged their parents not to eat frogs.
One day, Zhu met two parents on the street and they told him that once they and their children loved to eat frogs, but now they no longer do so.
Another time, Zhu saw one of his students persuading a boy to free the tadpoles he caught in a river. The student told him the tadpoles would become frogs that eat pests and explained that the number of frogs is decreasing. Finally, the boys freed the tadpoles.
"I'm glad my efforts are paying off," Zhu said. "Students have started making their own efforts and are calling on their relatives to protect nature and animals."
Last year, more than 500 students at the Zhuanqiao Primary School took quizzes on giant pandas and joined a panda drawing and painting competition. Students and faculty have made donations to the Wolong giant panda reserve in Sichuan Province.
For "Earth Hour" on March 27, Zhu distributed 1,000 pamphlets calling on everyone to turn their lights off for an hour, along with people around the world. More than 900 students and faculty took part in the event, he said. The school has 1,200 students and around 90 faculty members.
His early campaign to save oceans and sharks got a lot of feedback. He explained the importance of sharks to the ocean eco-system and how killing them for their fins was not only cruel but damaged nature's balance.
"I stopped eating shark's fin and told others not to eat shark's fin after the event," said 14-year-old Xu Shutin, now a student at Wenqi Middle School.
One of the biggest challenges facing Shanghai is garbage because of waste and lack of recycling and sorting garbage.
Zhu teaches students how to separate garbage that can be recycled and encourages students take recyclable waste to school every month. The school then sends the recycled waste in batches to recycling centers.
"I was delighted every time I saw students check the recycling bins before throwing in their garbage," he said.
Zhu, a native of Songjiang District, has been teaching since 1989. In 2008 his school was honored as one of the city's 10 model schools in wildlife protection.
Students spread the word to their friends and parents, whose habits are harder to change. But it's a start.
Some students decided not to eat frogs after they realized that frogs eat insects and are an important part of the eco-system.
Zhu teaches mathematics and biology at Zhuanqiao Primary School in Minhang District. He was one of the 70 winners nationwide of the 2010 Subaru Ecological Protection Award. He has been an activist in the conservation movement since 1998.
As a member of the city's wildlife conservation association, Zhu spends some of his spare time monitoring illegal wildlife sales. He frequently visits wet markets. When he sees vendors selling sparrows, other birds, frogs and animals, he informs local wildlife protection stations. Sometimes the sales are stopped.
Selling wildlife tarnishes Shanghai's image, Zhu said.
"The importance of protecting the environment and wildlife should be cultivated in childhood and these lessons will accompany people throughout life," he said.
Zhu doesn't deliver dull lectures but organizes fun, hands-on activities and field trips. Every year there's an animal of the Chinese zodiac campaign - this year it's rabbits for the Year of the Rabbit.
"On one hand, we should protect rabbits, on the other hand, we also explain concepts of species invasion, like the rabbit invasion in Australia," Zhu said. Children learn the part rabbits play in the eco-system. They take quizzes and win prizes for correct answers. There are giant costumed rabbits and exhibitions of traditional paper-cutting featuring rabbits.
In 1998, he launched his first "Save the Tiger" campaign to mark the Year of the Tiger. It was so successful that he launched similar animal protection campaigns.
In spring students learned about protecting birds and why they are so important to the eco-system. In Shanghai there are 482 known species of birds, and Zhu taught students how to recognize 60 of them. Students learned why locals shouldn't trap and eat birds. They staged a musical performance related to birds and signed a 10-meter-long scroll, pledging to protect birds. Afterward they wrote essays about birds.
Zhu has also explained the importance of protecting the oceans, sharks, turtles, frogs and pandas. After a frog event, many students signed a pledge never to eat the amphibians and some students, such as fifth-grader Yue Liang, urged their parents not to eat frogs.
One day, Zhu met two parents on the street and they told him that once they and their children loved to eat frogs, but now they no longer do so.
Another time, Zhu saw one of his students persuading a boy to free the tadpoles he caught in a river. The student told him the tadpoles would become frogs that eat pests and explained that the number of frogs is decreasing. Finally, the boys freed the tadpoles.
"I'm glad my efforts are paying off," Zhu said. "Students have started making their own efforts and are calling on their relatives to protect nature and animals."
Last year, more than 500 students at the Zhuanqiao Primary School took quizzes on giant pandas and joined a panda drawing and painting competition. Students and faculty have made donations to the Wolong giant panda reserve in Sichuan Province.
For "Earth Hour" on March 27, Zhu distributed 1,000 pamphlets calling on everyone to turn their lights off for an hour, along with people around the world. More than 900 students and faculty took part in the event, he said. The school has 1,200 students and around 90 faculty members.
His early campaign to save oceans and sharks got a lot of feedback. He explained the importance of sharks to the ocean eco-system and how killing them for their fins was not only cruel but damaged nature's balance.
"I stopped eating shark's fin and told others not to eat shark's fin after the event," said 14-year-old Xu Shutin, now a student at Wenqi Middle School.
One of the biggest challenges facing Shanghai is garbage because of waste and lack of recycling and sorting garbage.
Zhu teaches students how to separate garbage that can be recycled and encourages students take recyclable waste to school every month. The school then sends the recycled waste in batches to recycling centers.
"I was delighted every time I saw students check the recycling bins before throwing in their garbage," he said.
Zhu, a native of Songjiang District, has been teaching since 1989. In 2008 his school was honored as one of the city's 10 model schools in wildlife protection.
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