Marina Castellino
EDUCATION AND YOUTH ENGAGEMENT SPECIALIST, WHSRN
Calling all education-enthusiasts and shorebird-fanatics! Join Marina Castellino, Education and Youth Engagement Specialist, for an insider’s look at the Experiencia Ambientalia.
Marina will bring her teachings from Argentina to share the ins and outs of this unique environmental education program. She works with many schools around Laguna Mar Chiquita, Argentina, to empower future local leaders, identify threats to the wetland site, and develop community projects to propose and implement solutions to mitigate threats present in the region. This program connects students and communities from important sites for shorebirds across the Western Hemisphere through a variety of virtual and in-person activities. During this event, attendees will experience these activities first-hand that are connecting students across the Flyways. Be sure to dress accordingly for some outdoor exploration!
This event is designed for adults, whether you are a supporter, educator, or science professional—we’d love for you to join us! Spaces are limited. Click here to register!
Experiencia Ambientalia was created in 2021 by Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network (WHRSN)/Manomet and Líderes de Ansenuza Foundation, and combines environmental education with local and international community engagement to link WHSRN sites to one another, in order to promote shared experience and knowledge, and encourage a sense of community responsibility. Every year, a new class of students – from fifteen to nineteen years old – has the opportunity to experience field trips, shorebird camps, coastal cleanups, leadership events, a project fair, and an environmental leader’s forum.
To date, Experiencia Ambientalia has made some impressive progress, including:
- Training over 500 high school students in three editions of the program, empowering a community of over 50 teachers from 22 different towns in the region;
- Supporting 40 youth-led environmental projects on research, conservation and sustainable businesses;
- Leading 90 in-person events across the region; and
- Fostering connections among 15 different WHSRN sites, with a special focus on inland saline wetlands.