By: Denaya Karenzi (Volunteer Panda Mobile)

Water is the source of life. Not only humans, but all creatures on Earth need water. This was conveyed by WWF-Indonesia's Panda Mobile on Wednesday (3/21) when visiting SDN Wijaya Kusuma 02 Jelambar, West Jakarta. This activity aims to educate students to be more familiar with water and can be part of the solution to preserve water, both at school and in the surrounding environment.

"Water is a very important element in the lives of all living things so that its sustainability must be maintained in various ways. One of them is by being wise in using water," said Susamsa, Deputy Head of West Jakarta Education Office, when opening the activity with Panda Mobile. "Imagine if each of you reduces three dippers of water usage when bathing. One class can reduce more than 90 dippers, which means there will be more clean water left," he added.

The activity with Panda Mobile began with a storytelling by Kak Ryan for all students from grades 1-6. "Water on Earth is 97% seawater, 2% ice, and 1% fresh water. Very little, (fresh water that can be consumed) right?" exclaimed Kak Ryan. "The easiest way to protect water is to be frugal in its use. Not only that, planting trees is a step that can be taken to increase the amount of water itself," he added.< br />

Then students in grades 1-3 watched the movie "Banyu's Adventure in the World of Water" which tells the story of a boy who goes on an adventure to find out the origin of the water he consumes. "Water starts from the sea, then evaporates into clouds and finally rains. The water that falls into the ground will become the water reserve that we use," Gian, one of Panda Mobile's volunteers, explained after the movie. "Why do we have to plant trees?" asked Anton, a 3rd grade student. "By planting trees, the water that falls to the ground will be helped by the roots of the trees to the "well" or water source in the ground," Gian answered.

Elsewhere, students in grades 4-6 utilized used plastic bottles as a medium to grow kale vegetable plants using hydroponic techniques. "We can all utilize plastic waste into planting media. In addition to reducing waste, we can also get benefits through gardening activities in our own homes with economical use of water," said Denaya Karenzi, volunteer Panda Mobile.

They were also given the opportunity to research the condition of the water around them through the water laboratory facilities at Panda Mobile. Ririh, one of the Panda Mobile volunteers, explained that the freshwater laboratory facility is also owned by WWF-Indonesia at Subayang Field Station located in Rimbang Baling, Riau. This area is the original habitat of the Sumatran Tiger. By maintaining the quality of water around the Sumatran Tiger habitat, we are also helping to preserve them.

The students seemed enthusiastic in doing various activities presented by the Panda Mobile team. "I hope this is not the end, but rather the beginning of cooperation between SDN Wijaya Kusuma 02 Jelambar and WWF-Indonesia," hoped Titi, Head of SDN Wijaya Kusuma 02 Jelambar at the end of the event.