The National Mall, Washington, DC – World renowned explorer, environmentalist, film producer and educator Jean-Michel Cousteau met with a class of Ocean Guardians from North Point High School and their award-winning teacher Lolita Kiorpes at the National Mall in Washington, D.C. Together, they delved into the sources and impacts of trash in our communities and on our waterways. The event, which came just a few days after International Earth Day, was a part of Alice Ferguson Foundation’s Bridging The Watershed initiative, a program to inspire personal connections with the natural world, lifelong civic engagement, and environmental stewardship through hands-on curriculum-based outdoor studies in national parks and public lands.
The group of twenty students from Charles County used the Foundation’s Talking Trash activities as the frame for their interactive class with Cousteau, who shared his own experience with trash and marine debris from a global perspective. Students investigated the amount of time it takes for trash to decompose and the impact of trash and runoff on the nation’s waterways through the interactive Trash Timeline and Who Polluted the Potomac activities, then finished the day by assisting park rangers by picking up trash.
In 2016, Kiorpes and her students were the first National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Ocean Guardian School in Maryland. An initiative of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration National Marine Sanctuaries, the Ocean Guardian programs encourage students to explore their natural surroundings to form a sense of personal connection to the ocean and the watersheds in which they live.
The Alice Ferguson Foundation
The Foundation connects people to the natural world, sustainable agricultural practices, and the cultural heritage of their local watershed through education, stewardship, and advocacy. Bridging The Watershed is one of the Foundation’s three flagship programs that partners with the National Park Service and area schools, to promote student learning, personal connections with the natural world, lifelong civic engagement, and environmental stewardship through hands-on curriculum-based outdoor studies in national parks and public lands.