ENVIRONMENTAL-THEMED SOCIAL SERVICE WITH PANDA MOBILE AND LABRESCKE CHARITY
By: Nabila Cintya Batari (Volunteer Panda Mobile)
Panda Mobile WWF-Indonesia in collaboration with Labrescke Charity, a community consisting of alumni of FH Airlangga University, Surabaya, held a social service and iftar together. The event took place on Saturday (17/06) at Sidabukke Barbershop, West Jakarta. The activity aims to introduce and provide education regarding the benefits of environmental awareness to street children and orphans.
The event was opened with the introduction of WWF-Indonesia and Panda Mobile by Pratama Aditya Haryanto as the coordinator of Panda Mobile in front of about 80 children. They were then divided into several groups sorted by age, namely the 3-6 years old group, the 7-12 years old group, and the 12 years old and above group. The three groups participated in activities at several posts, namely the water education laboratory post, the movie post, and the game post.
An introduction to the water cycle, the benefits of water in everyday life, water-saving behavior, and the importance of water sources for wildlife, especially Sumatran tigers in their natural habitat, were the materials shared at the water education laboratory post. Children also tried the use of litmus paper and pH meter to identify the acidic or basic nature of a solution. They also used a microscope to determine the microbial content of water samples.
The game "Explore Papua" was presented in the game post. In the game, the children got information about several animals in Papua, ranging from the characteristics, habitat, and threats faced by the endangered Papuan animals. The way to play, with their eyes closed, children are asked to take information cards about typical Papuan animals. They then had to find a picture of the animal in one of the barrels and throw the ball into the barrel. Through this game, they get information about animals in Papua in a fun way.
For the viewing activity, the children were invited to watch a movie on the Panda Mobile truck. The back cabin of WWF-Indonesia's educational truck can be transformed into a place to watch movies. When watching the movie "The Animal Save the Planet (series)", children are shown animals that care and protect their environment. Another movie that was screened was "The Adventure of Banyu and Tetes Air" which tells about the process of water formation and the importance of water. The movies shown were adjusted to the age of each group. After watching the movie, the children were invited to discuss the messages contained in each movie.< br />
The last activity presented by the Panda Mobile team was storytelling by Kak Ryan entitled "Turtle and Plastic Waste". The story is about a sea turtle trapped in plastic waste that humans throw into the sea. It turned out that there were also many adults who really listened to the story told by Kak Ryan. They were amazed by the way Mr. Ryan could make the participants stunned to pay attention to him.< br />
Head of the Labrescke Charity activity, Riesta Adilla, said she was happy with the activities that had taken place. "The Panda Mobile team succeeded in providing new insights into the environment and animals in a fun way. The varied environmental issues were presented very well so it didn't feel boring," she said. The social service activity was closed with breaking the fast together.