EcoMarines Inspires Future Sustainability Leaders at the Upper Coomera State College STEM Showcase
EcoMarines was proud to recently attend the Upper Coomera State College STEM Showcase, which connects us with an incredible community of passionate students, educators, and parents who are all eager to celebrate innovation and sustainability!
At EcoMarines, we believe that every small action can create big waves. Seeing this represented so brilliantly by the students at Upper Coomera State College was inspiring!
Empowering Sustainable Action through Workshop
On behalf of EcoMarines, our Program Coordinator Latisha introduced us with a presentation all about the EcoMarines Program, diving into the challenges of navigating plastic pollution and the impacts it has on our marine life. This was also a fantastic opportunity to share project examples from other EcoMarines schools across the Gold Coast and explain the vital roles that our EcoMarines Ambassadors play in championing sustainability. Whether it’s stepping up as an EcoMarines Ambassador yourself, or being part of a larger Support Crew in your school, every student has the opportunity to create waves of change for a sustainable future.
Exploring Sustainability Through Hands-On Learning
Once the presentation concluded, Latisha hosted an EcoMarines stall, which quickly became a hub for collaborative discussion about current and future projects. EcoMarines was also able to provide a handful of different activities to students passing by; based on our four core pillars: Water, Waste, Energy, and Habitat.
STEM Showcase Business Competition
The key highlight of the event was seeing the Upper Coomera State College put their STEM knowledge to the test in order to tackle real-world sustainability issues in the STEM Showcase Business Competition. The creativity on display was phenomenal, featuring projects like automated ocean-cleaning drones, turtle-safe coastal lighting, and even devices designed specifically to cool the sand around turtle nests to stop global warming from impacting the birth rate of female turtles.
Celebrating Student Innovation
A special congratulations to the Year 9 category winners, “Eco-Shine”, for their incredible Bio-Glitter innovation!
The project relates directly to a recent awareness campaign by another EcoMarines school – Pallara State School, who have also highlighted the environmental dangers of traditional glitter. What really makes the Eco-Shine concept so great is that it’s practical for schools as an affordable and accessible solution that they can easily buy or create themselves to make an immediate impact.
EcoMarines would like to send a massive thanks to Upper Coomera State College for hosting such an innovative and collaborative event, and further thanks for asking EcoMarines to be a part of it! When students, schools, families, and communities come together, the potential for long-lasting change is endless!
Looking Ahead
The EcoMarines team are looking forward to seeing how these young innovators continue to protect our waterways, conserve our environments, and create impactful sustainability initiatives for years to come.
