The Dyer Island Conservation Trust’s Environmental Education Programme, known as DEEP, has been running in partnership with Masakhane Primary School for the past five years. Every year we accept 13 learners from Grade 5 who sign up to be committed to the programme for three years until Grade 7, so at this point the Trust runs three different groups throughout each year.
Educator Pinkey Ngewu is excited to get back to running the programme. “2020 was an incredibly difficult year for the programme as we could not have full access to meet with learners due to Covid-19 regulations. It was a year of new adaptions and extraordinary changes. We shifted with the new norm and conducted virtual activities and presentations with the older groups. The new group could not attend all their lessons for their first year, so for 2021 we essentially have two new groups to begin their journey,” said Pinkey.
To select learners, presentations are normally done at Masakhane School for the Grade 5 learners and then the learners are required to write a motivational letter stating why they should be selected to be in the programme but for 2021 the school selected the learners. There are currently 65 learners participating in the programme. Those learners that have since graduated and attend high school become part of the DEEP Marine Club and remain engaged in various activities; including welcoming the new learners to share what the DEEP is all about and what they have learnt in these past five years.
The DEEP Marine Club learners did a clean-up at the Uilenkraals Estuary bridge where it is evident that much dumping is taking place. 1km was covered, collecting 8 bags weighing 47kg. The top items collected were glass bottles, cigarette end and food wrappers.
“I am looking forward to journeying with these new groups this year and appreciate the support of the parents and teachers in ensuring the best future for not only the students on the programme but all those they in turn reach within the community,” said Pinkey.
DEEP New Intake 
