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NZ school makeover

Posted on 10 May, 2017

Over 120 local community members attended a working bee to help develop an unused area into an outdoor learning space at Leithfield School. This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Treemendous School Makeover initiative, a joint action between Project Crimson Trust and the Mazda Foundation. To celebrate, five schools, instead of the usual four, were selected to receive a $10,000 makeover, and create an outdoor educational space through the planting of native trees. Students, parents, teachers, community members, staff from Mazda New Zealand, Blackwells Mazda and Mazda Foundation Trustees together with the Project Crimson team pitched in to complete the makeover. The makeover – which was five times the size of any of the other winning schools – included developing the banks and surrounding area of the school into the newly created outdoor learning space. Over 1,200 natives were planted, along with garden beds, a community orchard, an outdoor classroom and a ‘trees of the world’ area. School principal Sharon Marsh says developing the banks of the school will motivate the children to learn more about the environment. “Providing an area where children can explore and learn about the natural environment and ecosystem will be invaluable to their education, and we’re proud to be able to offer such an important learning resource to our students. “We’d like to give special recognition to all the parents, teachers, families and local community members who attended the makeover, and worked tirelessly in the lead up to the event,” she said. Hurunui District Mayor Winton Dalley attended the event, mucking in and showing his support for the community. “One of the best parts of my job is seeing our community rally together for a great cause,” he said. “The students at Leithfield School have done a spectacular job, and I can’t wait to see where their environmental education leads them in the future.” Mazda Foundation Trustee, Andrew Clearwater says it was humbling to see such passion for the environment at Leithfield School.