Primary school pupils from Birmingham presented a national assembly encouraging schools to explore how they can help to protect the Amazon rainforest and support communities who live there.
On the 16th September, year 3 and 4 pupils at St Chad’s Catholic Primary School came together to present the LIVE Go Green assembly, in collaboration with overseas development charity CAFOD.
The harvest assembly encourages pupils to get involved in the Go Green challenge by taking part in green themed fundraising activities, which includes dressing green for the day, baking green cakes or making a pea green soup for lunch.
One pupil from St Chad’s Catholic Primary School, shares why their school got involved in the harvest campaign:
“We are an international school with over 20 languages spoken by children and staff! Our school is made up of many languages and cultures and our love for God unites us every day. We want to celebrate and support all the people who look after the world and protect nature.”
World leaders are coming together in Glasgow this November for a crucial meeting about the climate crisis and the future of our planet and its people. Ahead of the climate conference COP26, CAFOD’s Go Green assembly encourages children to speak up for people affected by climate change all around the world.
The assembly in September also featured Luana, a 14-year-old girl from the Brazilian Amazon, who sends a powerful message of how the climate crisis is affecting people all around the world, and what she and her community are doing to protect the rainforest.
When fires destroyed the crops and trees that Luana’s community rely on to survive, CAFOD’s local experts helped them to replant using sustainable methods so that they would have food to eat and to sell.
Sharing why the amazon should be protected, Luana says:
“Without nature, people wouldn’t have anything. From nature comes our food and fruits- and it also protects our waters. Without nature there wouldn’t be any water, it would end. It’s very important we protect it.”
The Archbishop of Birmingham, Archbishop Bernard Longley, joined the assembly to thank children and young people in Birmingham and Catholic schools across England and Wales for taking action with CAFOD and raising their voices on the important issue of the climate crisis.
“Congratulations to the children of St Chad’s who’ve joined with children all over the world to present this very powerful assembly to encourage others to pray, raise money and speak out for a better world,” he said.