COASTWATCH IN THE SCHOOLS
Art and Ecology Workshops
Creating connection with art and science
Creating Connections
What is the connection between king tides, marine litter, and the western snowy plover? The CoastWatch in Schools program set out to share this less-than-obvious link through an educational project that started in the winter of 2022 in the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area.
The Art and Ecology Workshop successfully connected king tides, marine litter, and the western snowy plover through a volunteer cleanup, educational games, and videos, culminating in an innovative art project across local schools, fostering environmental awareness and education.
The Art and Ecology Workshop is a collaborative effort led by the CoastWatch in Schools program in partnership with Siuslaw Forest Service staff, Elizabeth Roberts, Washed Ashore, Curry Watersheds Partnership, Oregon Parks Forever, Oregon Parks Foundation, Oregon Community Foundation, Coquille Tribal Community Fund, Lamb-Baldwin Foundation, The Roundhouse Foundation, So-Hum Foundation, National Marine Sanctuary Foundation, and NOAA. The success of our first year has garnered support for a second year, with an invitation extended to other coastal schools to participate in this enriching educational experience.
Starting on the Shore
We kicked off the project at the Oregon National Dunes Recreation Area with a volunteer beach cleanup in mid-February, after the last set of seasonal king tides and before the snowy plovers had their nesting season. Over three days, while the plovers darted around, Forest Service staff and CoastWatch volunteers filled a 10-foot box truck full of marine debris, amounting to about 150 trash bags (though there were many large items, including tires and giant pieces of foam). Washed Ashore donated the truck and delivered the debris to their warehouse for sorting.
The sites were chosen based on the amount of debris present and remote location.
Workshop Week
Next, we held an art and ecology week in May at Kalmiopsis and Riley Creek Elementary Schools in Curry County. We worked with kindergarten through 8th-grade students and created four stations:
- A marine debris race
- Beach in a box 2.0
- A 30-minute CoastWatch film highlighting photos from the dune cleanup and education about plovers and tides
- A collaborative art project using the marine debris collected in February
For the final project, artist Elizabeth Roberts drew snowy plovers over 14 pieces of fabric, each one 3 x 6 feet in size. We worked with 14 different classrooms, each filling their part of the grid with colorful marine debris – like paint by number. No glue was used. After the class filled in their panel, it was photographed from above, the marine debris was put back into bins, the next class would enter, and a new panel was laid out. The result was revealed a few days later when the photos were digitally “stitched” together, and the final product could be seen. It’s amazing (and disturbing)!
A fun side project to the plover mural included students designing their no-glue art and having a piece of their digital art. The results were incredibly creative!
Community Support
We are grateful to all our partners and funders in this project who helped make it a reality: Siuslaw Forest Service staff, Washed Ashore, Curry Watersheds Partnership, Oregon Parks Foundation, Oregon Community Foundation, Coquille Tribal Community Fund, Lamb-Baldwin Foundation, The Roundhouse Foundation, So-Hum Foundation, National Marine Sanctuary Foundation, and NOAA. Thanks also to Roy Lowe for the snowy plover footage used in the film and some memorable still photos.
We’ve received funding for a second year from Gray Family Foundation, Oregon Parks Foundation Fund, and the Oregon Community Foundation. We can’t wait to do this again with other coastal schools. Is your school interested? Please let us know!
