It’s getting greener at Nexus! As a part of the school’s commitment to environmental sustainability, their learners have started planting some edible greens throughout the school.
Nexus has started their new outdoor garden on the 5th floor of the campus- a specific placement because it also houses their school cafeteria. There are 12 garden beds at the moment that are tended to by the Green Guardians, a CCA where learners can learn to garden and work with our plants. They have planted a range of herbs and vegetables, including aubergine, ladies fingers, sweet basil, thai basil, rosemary, chilli, aloe vera, lemongrass and curry leaves- a list to behold!
As shared by Lachlan MacKinnon, Principal of Nexus International School (Singapore), “There are so many great benefits to having a garden in a school, from providing a context for students to understand seasonality and life cycles, to providing opportunities for one-on-one time for teachers and students to talk. It also provides a connection for the students to their school.”
The school hopes to harvest the crops back into the cafeteria kitchen so that learners may consume the fruits of their labour. As the learners continue to harvest the crops, they aim to use the revenue stream generated to restock the gardens. Eventually, they have their sights set on selling these natural produce to the community.
During the school’s Christmas fair, learners collaborated with the cafeteria staff to create infused olive oils with chilli and rosemary. With sustainability in mind, they also used recycled glass bottles from drinks that were sold in the cafeteria to package the goods. Overall, the learners managed to sell out of the 30 bottles that they had, successfully raising money to purchase seeds for their next batch of crops. It must have been an exciting experience for the learners to see their home-grown products receive such popularity!
Nexus has continued to expand its green endeavours and has started on Hydroponics as well. Though it is currently operating on a small scale, the school has already managed to grow and harvest crops three times since they brought in the units (within a six weeks period). This is a fascinating observation for learners to make as they will learn that hydroponics provides enhanced plant yields and uses almost ten times less water than traditional field crop watering methods. Not to mention, since the units are placed in a main hallway, the learners will always be able to take a quick glance and observe growth in real time.
The school is excited about this progress as it is yet another way to introduce authentic and enriching experiences to their learners. Nexus believes in educating its learners about their place in the world and how they can become agents of change to make a difference. It is constantly striving to help learners make these connections to become well-rounded global citizens.
