Biodiversity in your school
What can you do to make a difference?
What is Biodiversity?
Biodiversity is all the different living things that can be found in one area.
This variety of animals, plants, bacteria and other microorganisms make up our natural world and, in a healthy ecosystem, they all work together in harmony maintaining and supporting balance and life.
Why is Biodiversity important?
Without a wide range of life working together we cannot have healthy ecosystems, and it is these ecosystems that provide food, water and shelter for all life including us.
![Flowers](https://biojoyversity.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/flowers.jpg)
![Robin](https://biojoyversity.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/robin.jpg)
More space makes a big difference.
The Wildlife Trust states that
“those that have the least access to nature also have the worst levels of physical and mental wellbeing. Seeing birds near our homes, walking through green spaces filled with wildflowers, and along rivers that are clean and clear, reduces stress, fatigue, anxiety and depression.”
With this in mind we should surely be increasing the natural area available for school children to play, study and relax in, not reducing it.
Recommended non-hard-surfaced social area is 2,600m2 for a school with 1,000 pupils, and recommended habitat space is a paltry 0.5m2 per pupil.
Landscaping to encourage nature doesn’t have to be labour intensive; in fact, it is much less costly to maintain than mown grass. As an added bonus, if every school had an area dedicated to increasing biodiversity, think of the positive impact it would have on our wildlife.
Sir David Attenborough recently commented, “no one will protect what they don’t care about; and no one will care about what they have never experienced.”
Our wildlife is in crisis and more of our children than ever are struggling with mental health issues. A nature-rich school environment could help with both of these issues.
No child should leave school having had no experience of our native wildlife; and they should all know, at the very least, what a stinging nettle looks like!
Resources
![October is a great time to plant violets](https://biojoyversity.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/violets.jpg)
October is a great time to plant violets
Violets are common and widespread throughout the UK so why plant them? Violets are the foodplant...
![Palm Bay Primary School’s “Eco-List”](https://biojoyversity.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/palm-bay-pupil-power.jpg)
Palm Bay Primary School’s “Eco-List”
Palm Bay Primary School's idea was to create a list of simple weekly challenges that the children...
![Project 10,000+](https://biojoyversity.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/project-1000.jpg)
Project 10,000+
Project 10,000+ by Anaid and Daniel. Their project focuses on endangered and threatened trees and...
![Biodiversity](https://biojoyversity.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/nhm-masterclass.jpg)
Biodiversity
![September is a great time to take lavender cuttings](https://biojoyversity.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/september-lavender.jpg)
September is a great time to take lavender cuttings
Lavender is a good nectar source for bees and butterflies and a great way to increase biodiversity...
Teacher Resources
We have put together some useful resource for Teachers, all available for download.