The Lakes South Morang College Newsletter PRINCIPAL REPORT
WORLD ENVIRONMENT DAY:
Our College has been doing a significant amount of work to create a safe, inclusive and respectful learning environment in which Koori culture, knowledge and art is recognised and celebrated. The next planned step in our reconciliation journey is to be the inclusion and embedment of traditional language across our school community. The Lakes has been working with the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Cultural Heritage Aboriginal Corporation with the intent to re - launch our House system with names that draw from the Woi wurrung language, the language used by the Traditional Owners of the land on which our school is situated, the Wurundjeri - Willam people of the Whittlesea area north of Naarm (Melbourne ’ s CBD). We are in the final stages of consulting with the language keepers within the Council to determine fitting names for our Red, Blue, Yellow and Green Houses. We have future intentions of working with Koori artists to design artwork reflecting the traditional words used to name our Houses. Moving forward, Reconciliation for The Lakes will see both Koori, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture embedded into what students see and hear within and across our College. Various classroom activities have taken place that saw the incorporation Indigenous perspectives and stories into lessons, encouraging students to develop a deeper appreciation for Australia's First Nations people. Additionally, we have seen The Lakes Acknowledgement of Country enshrined into each of our learning spaces through the help and support of Letitia in our STEM Centre who laser cut plaques for each classroom across the College.
World Environment Day is a global initiative celebrated on June 5th each year to encourage awareness and action for the protection of our planet. This year, we are focusing on the theme of #BeatPlasticPollution, which calls for individuals and communities to take action to reduce plastic pollution and promote sustainable alternatives. On this day, we sent a contingent of Primary and Secondary students along to the Whittlesea Council Youth Environment Summit. This event was organised by Council ’ s Youth Development Team alongside Council ’ s Environment Team. The theme of the Summit this year was Environmental Sustainability. Attending students were able to contribute to a Council video montage and a school pledge around the theme.
Additionally, The Lakes has recently submitted an application to be a part of a Federal Grant around the installation of the BirdNET - Pi - Innovative Biodiversity Monitoring Program. Jeremy of Year 8 has been working with the Whittlesea Tech School and has been working on the BirdNetPi
which is a device that monitors the sounds
around it and detects bird sounds to then identify the
species of bird. The Lakes was approached by Jeremy, the Whittlesea Council and Whittlesea Tech School to become a partner in the project. As our College is nestled next door to the nature reserve, where in the past the extremely rare species, the Swift Parrot, has been detected, we were nominated as an ideal partner for the project. We eagerly await notification of the grant, and welcome opportunities to work with students and external organisations in the preservation of our local environment. Reconciliation Week and World Environment Day provide us with an opportunity to reflect, learn, and take action. By fostering a deeper understanding of Indigenous cultures and practicing environmental sustainability, we can contribute to a more inclusive, connected and greener future.
Thank you for your continued support.
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