Placard-wielding students from Knightsbridge School were joined by a filmmaking naturalist and a Britain’s Got Talent-starring choir as they marched to a Chelsea square for Earth Day
Pupils from a London independent school took to the streets to draw attention to Earth Day last Friday (22 April).
Knightsbridge School (KS) students marched the half-mile from campus to Duke of York Square, Chelsea, accompanied by filmmaking naturalist, Nick Gates, and Britain’s Got Talent-starring climate activists, the S.O.S. from the Kids choir.
“The aim of our KS Earth Day celebration is to encourage our children to fall in love with nature so that they’re more likely to help protect the planet, now and in the future,” said Shona Colaço, head of KS.
“Educating our school community about the environment is something we take very seriously at KS and our Earth Day march is a symbol of our commitment to ensuring all our pupils know how precious the Earth’s resources are.”
Both Gates and the choir took part in an all-school assembly ahead of the march, before helping pupils make some of the banners and signs pictured above and below.
Once assembled in the square, students joined forces with S.O.S. from the Kids choir to perform two songs for onlookers.
Pupils made banners highlighting their biggest nature-related concerns
“I hope that we can inspire the children of Knightsbridge School that no one is too small to make a difference,” said 14-year-old choir co-founder, Noah Macaulay.
“None of us in S.O.S. from the Kids ever imagined that, after we shared an environmental song we wrote with friends and put online, we would go on to perform on Britain’s Got Talent or sing to world leaders at COP 26.
“I hope we can encourage the school kids to use their creativity to share about the urgent need to protect nature, because the natural world is incredible and it protects us, and it mustn’t be destroyed.”
In the weeks preceding the march, KS pupils invited to “find your wild” had been undertaking a wide range of activities related to nature and the outdoors, including walks, tree climbing, and bike riding.
Students, parents and teachers were also encouraged to take a recycled paper leaf on which to jot down sustainability-related commitments they would fulfil. After hanging for a week on a tree installation outside the school, the pledges were due to be sent to the prime minister and other MPs.
“The importance of engaging with, sharing and protecting our natural world is ever more critical in this era of biodiversity collapse and even the youngest pupils should feel empowered and proud to stand up and make their voices heard,” said Gates.
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