Conservation Fortnight

Conservation fortnight is organised to raise awareness on Republic Polytechnic’s students about the importance of conserving the environment. This program is an annual program. There would be 2 to 4 talks given by different speakers. Various types of awareness was shared during this sessions. It is also a program to attract students who are interested in conserving environments and they can deepen the knowledge as well as build more interest in it.

Date: 24 July - 30 July 2015

Venue: LR-W4A (lecture room), LRW3

Details: A series of talks to learn more about various aspects of Conservation.

* Importance of sustainable seafood

1)Little Wild Dot: Stories Of Singaporean Conservationists

* Conservation biology is a new branch of science focused on the conservation of biodiversity.But protecting biodiversity takes more than just understanding ecosystems, often working with people from disciplines outside of science. Listened to the stories of 4 young Singaporean conservationists with different approaches towards the conservation of biodiversity but one common goal of protecting it.

* Venue: LRW4A OR LRW3[two talks (in the same venue)]

About the Speaker:

Cheo Pei Rong

Pei Rong has as-interest in the intertidal habitats in Singapore, including those found on the mainland.She works closely with park managers to survey and monitor these unique habitats.

Cyrena Lin

Cyrena has worked in research , private and public bodies and has experience in environmental education with Wildlife Reserves Singapore and the National Parks Board.

Kathy Xu

Kathy was originally a teacher for 7 years but alter swimming with a whale shark, she now works for shark conservation.Now the founder of The Dorsal Effect, Kathy works to providing shark fishermen an alternative way of living : shark tourism

Li TianJiao

Tianjiao was previously in TmSI and currently works in the National Biodiversity Centre of the National Park’s Board.She works extensively in freshwater ecology, with particular focus in the last remaining freshwater swamp forest.Nee Soon Swamp.

2) ‘Buzz on Bees’ by Mr Carl Baptista:

• About the Speaker:

Carl Baptista has worked with insects for 20 years, from killing them to breeding them, to conserving them. His progression from serial insect killer, to medicine man, to bee whisperer has been a biology journey with many twists and turns. He graduated from King's College London, with a Biotechnology degree and has published several peer reviewed papers in the fields of entomology, biotechnology, biochemistry and clinical medicine. Specialization does not suit him. He currently consults in Singapore and regionally on a variety of topics from urban entomology on resort islands to biological control of lepidoptera on roadside trees. He is current the co-founder of Pollen Nation, a social enterprise to conserve Singaporean pollinators namely Singaporean bees. He hopes to be Singapore's Bee whisperer. He is still the only man in Singapore willing to get up close with killer bee hives.

• The only man in Singapore willing to get up close to killer bees, Carl Baptista from Pollen Nation, will share about the situation on bees in Singapore and the growing appreciation of them.Learn about their history, their importance in religion, medicine, and agriculture.Understand the unique characteristics that makes this bee so special.Learn how Tetragonula laeviceps preservation and other bees species of Singapore will impact Singaporeans,the environment the food and plants we enjoy every day!

3)Coral conservation

Coral reefs are spectacular, diverse, ecosystems that are home to thousands of different species.Coral reefs have been termed ‘the rainforests of the sea’ because they support a vast abundance and diversity of different plants and animals, more species than any other marine ecosystem, with more still being discovered. Coral reefs are threatened by fishing, climate change, and development, and are having trouble all around the world. With sufficient effort and political will, most of the direct impacts to coral reefs can be alleviated. Come and explore how we can protect the coral reef and understand their basic biology of this beautiful underwater forest