(NEWS) Underwater Alien Invasion

April

2014

Underwater Alien Invasion - Publishing Party

On 29 April, a group of local school children were invited to celebrate the release of Underwater Alien Invasion, a children’s book completed by WMU as part of the North Sea Ballast Water Opportunity Project. A class of fifth-graders from Bladins International School met at the SEA-U Marine Education Centre and were divided in three groups that rotated through three different activities: a trip out into the Oresund with the SEA-U research boat; testing how ballast water works by building their own ships and loading them with water balloon-ballast tanks; and a presentation about marine aliens found in ballast water and what the shipping world is doing to stop the invasion. The activities also included the opportunity for the students to build their own marine aliens from various materials made available by SEA-U staff.

The event concluded with each student receiving a copy of the Underwater Alien Invasion book which is a public awareness project aimed at educating children on the topic of ballast water, alien invasive species, and their management. The book was written by WMU Research Assistant and Ph.D. student, Annukka Pekkarinen from Finland, based on ideas by WMU alumnus Anna Rabotnova from the Ukraine, and former Research Assistant Anne Bouyssou from France. Malin Pålsson, a local artist, illustrated the book.

To learn more about the North Sea Ballast Water Opportunity Project, click here.

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