Banbridge Academy and The Branch of Beijing 161 High School China participate in a live online event.

On Wednesday 7^th December, 25 pupils from Banbridge Academy joined 25 students from The Branch of Beijing 161 High School in China for a live online event to discuss recycling and the environment. The event was part of the third series of the China-UK Educational and Cultural Online Exchange and marked the 50^th anniversary since the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the UK. The theme for the day was ‘Share a low-carbon life, enjoy a green future’.

Pupils were joined by representatives from the Northern Ireland Bureau of the British Embassy in China, the Chinese Consulate General in Belfast, the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, the Xicheng District People’s Government, and the Confucius Institute for Northern Ireland at Ulster University.

Following opening speeches from dignitaries representing both China and Northern Ireland, pupils exchanged best practice on recycling and the environment, with teachers from each school presenting a lesson on their school’s own efforts to tackle the issues on the table.

The Branch of Beijing 161 High School shared a lesson on measures being taken throughout the school to ensure that they are incorporating environmentally-friendly action throughout the curriculum, including switching to LED lighting in classrooms; ceasing provision of disposable chopsticks at lunchtime; fashioning globes out of recycled ping-pong balls in Geography class; and even designing their own water-purifying machines in Chemistry class.

Banbridge Academy then presented a lesson on their school’s very own horticultural garden, showing the pupils in Beijing how they are increasing biodiversity and ensuring greater sustainability for the local area in the long-term. The school’s Horticultural Society works hard to promote wildlife, as well as to encourage a greater awareness and appreciation among pupils of the ecology of their school grounds.

Both schools enjoyed the opportunity to ask their counterparts a question about their school’s environmental efforts, before enjoying musical performances from both sides. The Branch of Beijing 161 High School performed using instruments made from recycled materials, and Banbridge Academy provided beautifully festive vocal and harp performances.

Pupils from both schools jointly signed and read aloud a pledge created specifically for the event, reaffirming their joint commitment to environmentally-responsible actions to protect the planet for future generations. The pledge’s tagline was ‘Go green, breathe clean!’

Before closing the event, schools exchanged gifts as a token of their thanks for cooperation on such a globally-pressing topic. The Branch of Beijing 161 High School presented Banbridge Academy with two musical instruments made by their pupils entirely out of recycled materials. In return Banbridge Academy presented the pupils of The Branch of Beijing 161 High School with two handmade, bespoke linen aprons produced locally by past pupils of the school, symbolic of Northern Ireland’s rich linen production history.

Speaking about the event’s success, Dr Che Lubin (Co-Director, Confucius Institute for Northern Ireland at Ulster University) said: “It was a pleasure to watch our young people participate in this event, which provided pupils from Banbridge and Beijing an invaluable opportunity to have a tangible, live exchange with counterparts across the globe, discussing real issues that affect all of them. We thank pupils in both schools for their commitment to this pilot event, and we hope it can pave the way for future live online exchanges between pupils across Northern Ireland and China.”

Poster competition

On 5th December, the Confucius Institute at Northern Ireland for Ulster University held the judging of its annual poster competition, open to primary and post-primary pupils across its hub and partner schools. A panel of judges were invited to view over 5,500 entries and select just 10 winners for each category (Key Stage 1; Key Stage 2; and Post-Primary), awarding 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd prizes to each of the 3 categories, as well as 7 Highly Commended per category. Banbridge Academy submitted one entry to the competition, and that entry managed to secure a position in the top 10 posters for Key Stage 3, with Evelyn Bor (Year 14) being awarded one of the coveted ‘Highly Commended’ spots.