Stars and STEM Stories
GLOBE Peru Creates a Community of Trainers
For two days in May 2016, 24 teachers and professionals met for a workshop in Lima, Peru. The goal of the workshop was to ignite their curiosity, enhance their hands-on technical skills and expand their knowledge of GLOBE protocols. They successfully achieved these goals and in the process, created a cohesive community of trainers within GLOBE Peru.
The event was facilitated by Marta Kingsland and Oscar Busch, two expert trainers in GLOBE protocols from Buenos Aires, Argentina. The participants included teachers from various parts of Peru, including: Ancash, Arequipa, Ayacucho, Callao, Junin, Lambayeque, Lima, and Pasco. The event also included specialists from the National Service of Protected Natural Areas and the Ministry of Education.
During the two-day workshop, the participants were instructed in how to teach GLOBE protocols, specifically soil and atmosphere protocols, in order to train other teachers in their respective communities.
The first day was spent focused on the theory of the different protocols and instruments, with presentations, demonstrations and examples.
The workshop also showcased a number of interactive, hands-on activities. At one point, thanks to the enthusiasm of the group, a table was dragged to the center of the room and everyone gathered around and performed experiments on a variety of soil samples.
The second day was spent in the field, at a local park. There, outside in the fresh air and under the warmth of the sun, participants were able to put into practice what they learned the day before and to actively engage in using various technical instruments and making and sharing observations.
To wrap up the workshop, a “Google Group” was created in order for all of the participants to stay in contact with each other, share resources and experiences, and ask questions of -- and receive support from – their new GLOBE community. The workshop ended on an enthusiastic note, with certificates, photos and plans to collaborate in the future.
"Having only been working with GLOBE Peru for a short time, it was exciting for me to see the collaboration and support that exists between professionals in different countries working with GLOBE,” said Kara Widegren, who is a Peace Corps Response Volunteer working with GLOBE in Peru. She added: “For me, it was an opportunity to witness how GLOBE brings together people that are passionate about the environment and provides the opportunity and resources for them to work together and support one another in the common goal of contributing to our understanding of the world and encouraging scientific curiosity in our schools.”
“This workshop,” Widegren continued, “gave over twenty teachers and professionals the resources and knowledge necessary to go out in their communities and train more schools and teachers in how to become involved in GLOBE. In this way, more schools will have the support and training necessary to contribute observations and data to GLOBE’s international pool of information, as well as provide more students the opportunity to learn about their environment in an interactive, hands-on way.”
The entire Peru community is grateful to Marta Kingsland, Oscar Busch and Amalia Aubone for their expertise and willingness to travel all the way from Argentina to help support and grow GLOBE’s impact in Peru.