RCE Curitiba-Parana - 2022

Colouring for Caring: Southwest Atlantic Endangered Elasmobranchs
Basic Information
Title of project : 
Colouring for Caring: Southwest Atlantic Endangered Elasmobranchs
Submitting RCE: 
RCE Curitiba-Parana
Contributing organization(s) : 
Universidade Federal do Paraná (UFPR)
Grupo de Estudos de Elasmobrânquios do Paraná (GEEP)
Universidade Federal do Ceará (UFC)
Focal point(s) and affiliation(s)
Name: 
Patricia Charvet
Organizational Affiliation: 
PPGSis Universidade Federal do Ceará (UFC)
E-mail: 
pchalm@gmail.com
Name: 
Natascha Wosnick
Organizational Affiliation: 
GEEP and PPGZoo Universidade Federal do Paraná (UFPR)
E-mail: 
n.wosnick@gmail.com
Name: 
Marcelo Errera
Organizational Affiliation: 
PPGEA Universidade Federal do Paraná
E-mail: 
merrera@gmail.com
Name: 
Eloisa Pinheiro
Organizational Affiliation: 
GEEP and PPGZoo Universidade Federal do Paraná (UFPR)
E-mail: 
elopinheirog@gmail.com
Name: 
Renata Daldin Leite
Organizational Affiliation: 
GEEP
E-mail: 
daldin.r@gmail.com
Format of project: 
open access online and printed booklet
Language of project: 
Portuguese and Spanish
Date of submission:
Wednesday, September 7, 2022
Web link: 
Web link to download the latest version of the booklet (note that previously there have been several updates): https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1G24j8byNjIVWW-V01Aklwe-s7n8nFrce?usp=sharing
Additional resources: 
A final updated version will be officially launched during the 2022 Sharks International Conference, in October 2022, in Valencia, Spain.
Does this project link to any education and/or sustainable development policy or policies?: 
Yes
Brazilian National Plan of Action for Sharks (NPOA Brazil)
At what level is the policy operating?: 
National
Strategic Planning for the Conservation of the Sandtiger Shark in the Southwest Atlantic involving Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay (Aportes para la planificación estratégica de la conservación del tiburón Carcharias taurus en el Atlántico Sudoccidental) WCS
At what level is the policy operating?: 
International
research project on the Tiger Shark funded by Boticário Group Foundation in partnership with MarBrasil Association
At what level is the policy operating?: 
National
IUCN Species Survival Commission (IUCN SSC) and IUCN SSC Shark Specialist Group (IUCN SSC SSG)
At what level is the policy operating?: 
International
IUCN SSC Shark Specialist Group (IUCN SSC SSG)
At what level is the policy operating?: 
International
Geographical & Education Information
Region: 
Americas
Country: 
Brazil
Location(s): 
Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay
Address of focal point institution for project: 
PPGEA - Universidade Federal do Paraná (UFPR)
Rua Francisco H. dos Santos, 210 - Centro Politécnico, Jardim das Américas
Curitiba - Paraná, 81531-980
Brazil

PPGSis - Universidade Federal do Ceará (UFC)
Acesso Público, 913 - Pici
Fortaleza - Ceará, 60020-181
Brazil
Ecosystem(s):
Coastal
Oceanic
Target Audience:
Community, Primary, Teacher Ed., Youth (Informal)
Socioeconomic and environmental characteristics of the area : 
The Southwest Atlantic Ocean comprises Southern Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay, is a region of great marine biodiversity and a hotspot for elasmobranch conservation. In this region there is a predominance of sandy beaches, with few coastal rocks and some offshore islands. In Winter there are strong winds and currents, while in the Summer the ocean is calm and visited by many tourists. There are artisanal fishers’ villages and landing sites, mainly with low-income families. There are many educational challenges and environmental themes are given low priority, with species conservation themes being left out in most schools that serve low-income families.
Description of sustainable development challenge(s) in the area the project addresses: 
Despite the great regional species diversity, limited investment is allocated for marine wildlife conservation. In developing countries, environmental education is still very needed. Topics like species management, conservation and protection go unnoticed in most schools, mainly in those that serve low-income families, despite having many studies pointing out the advantages of introducing environmental awareness content to young children. Sustainable fisheries and the understanding that some species are threatened, face risk of extinction and need our attention are urgently needed. Education for sustainable development is key to ensure species survival for future generations.
Contents
Status: 
Ongoing
Period: 
June, 2020
Rationale: 
The Southwest Atlantic Ocean is a hotspot for elasmobranch conservation; however, little investment is allocated to effective measures for conservation. Many low-income families live in coastal regions and depend on fishing resources as their main source of protein. The introduction of the theme "Environmental Education" in the early stages of education creates opportunities for children to connect with environmental issues, and to develop positive attitudes, knowledge, and stimulus to take action. Thus, developing educational material can introduce the theme to children from poor communities that depend on fishing resources bringing positive effects and a greater commitment to environmental causes. However, activities like these should be made accessible to the largest number of people. This became possible as more people from developing countries had access to the internet, thus disseminating eco-friendly knowledge as a powerful tool nowadays. Under this scenario, the development of an illustrative threatened species booklet can be playful, interactive, and informative. This material will expand children's knowledge and concern about elasmobranch species found in the region. Furthermore, it will help to deconstruct the negative image of sharks and rays and promote an improvement in the perception that these animals are much more than just fishing resources.
Objectives: 
The development of a coloring book of threatened elasmobranch species from the Southwest Atlantic Ocean is aimed at increasing elasmobranch conservation awareness through a multisensory educational approach. The aim is to distribute the coloring books with a coloring pencil kit to children from underprivileged communities in key locations in southern Brazil, Uruguay, and Argentina. In the long term, the coloring book will serve as supporting material for the introduction of conservation as a cross-cutting theme in schools and home education.
Activities and/or practices employed: 
The colouring books were chosen as a multisensory educational approach that increases the focus on the theme, creating correlations through colour associations. The activities comprise: printing of booklets to be distributed with a small pencil kit to children from underprivileged communities in locations in each of the three countries covered; and open online access to the booklet through digital platforms linked to marine wildlife conservation institutions. This booklet can be used as a leisure activity at home or used in-class as a school activity with teachers choosing species or ecosystems to talk about with students.
Size of academic audience: 
Approximately 14,000 children aged 5 to 10 years (4,000 directly and 10,000 indirectly).
Results: 
The booklet was initially designed as a way to help parents entertain and educate children during the pandemic period. The initial draft was designed in Portuguese and released online in June 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic. After release, several positive feedbacks were obtained, with many downloads of the content and media coverage. Subsequently, the opportunity to expand the scope, add information and reach coastal regions of Brazil neighboring countries arose. The booklet content was updated according to suggestions and in 2021 counted with the support of the IUCN SSC. texts were translated into Spanish, to cover a wider audience. The final updated version of the booklet will be printed and officially launched to the scientific community at the 2022 Sharks International Conference, along with distribution to schools (mainly schools in coastal regions with little financial resources), educational activities with teachers and online distribution.
Lessons learned: 
The main positive and successful point is that its model arouses the interest of children of different ages, being a tool that can be disseminated to a wide audience. Also, digital dissemination facilitates its distribution. A major challenge was the bilingual adaptation regarding the species’ common names, since this information is not widely disseminated and varies a lot (even within countries). It was prepared by volunteers and reviewed by collaborators from different countries, which highlights the importance of collaboration between specialists from different regions in environmental education actions to review content and adapt information to sociocultural realities of each region.
Key messages: 
Children need to learn about biodiversity, marine species and species conservation. These contents can be presented in a fun and informative way using a colouring booklet as a means for this. We will only learn to care about species when we learn more about them and their importance in ecosystems.
Relationship to other RCE activities: 
The present project is directly related to other RCE activities. This project is on biodiversity, more specifically on marine elasmobranch biodiversity and conservation, one of the main topics covered by RCE Curitiba - Paraná. It is directly related to our RCE project established in 2019 “Freshwater Chondrichthyan Biodiversity and Interactions with Humans: danger under the surface?”. The main differences between them is that the previous project comprised freshwater environments and was oriented to an adult audience. This project focuses on the marine environment and is oriented towards a youth audience.
Funding: 
This colouring booklet project was partially funded by an IUCN SSC Internal Small Grant, with support provided by the Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi and Rewild. This funding was requested to cover the printing of some copies, the purchase of colour pencils delivered with the booklet and partial distribution of the final revised printed version of the booklet.

Pictures:

File Name Caption for picture Photo Credit
Image icon Photo1_GEEP_Image_Database.jpeg (76.8 KB) Child colouring the cover of one of the previous versions of the booklet on sharks and rays. GEEP Image Database
Image icon Photo2_GEEP_Image_Database.jpeg (74.17 KB) Child colouring one of the pages of the previous versions of the booklet on sharks and rays. GEEP Image Database
Image icon Photo3_GEEP_Image_Database.jpeg (55.63 KB) Child proudly showing her coloured booklet on sharks and rays. GEEP Image Database
Image icon Photo4_GEEP_Image_Database.jpeg (66.79 KB) Young child looking and colouring the Tiger Shark page of the booklet. GEEP Image Database
Image icon Photo5_GEEP_Image_Database.jpeg (33.04 KB) Child proudly showing her colouring of the Bull Shark page of the booklet. GEEP Image Database
Image icon Photo6_GEEP_Image_Database.jpeg (78.82 KB) Child happily showing his booklet on sharks and rays. GEEP Image Database
References and reference materials: 
PDF icon SSC Internal Grants 2020.pdf
PDF icon Colouring for Caring partial booklet_Sept 08_2022.pdf
UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
(https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdgs) and other themes of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD)
SDG 4 - Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all 
Direct
SDG 10 - Reduce inequality within and among countries 
Indirect
SDG 12 - Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns 
Indirect
SDG 14 - Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development 
Direct
SDG 17 - Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalise the global partnership for sustainable development 
Direct
Theme
Traditional Knowledge  
Indirect
Arts 
Indirect
Curriculum Development 
Indirect
Plants & Animals 
Direct
ESD for 2030-Priority Action Areas
Priority Action Area 1 - Advancing policy 
state: 
Direct
Priority Action Area 2 - Transforming learning and training environments 
state: 
Direct
Priority Action Area 3 - Developing capacities of educators and trainers 
state: 
Indirect
Priority Action Area 4 - Mobilizing youth 
state: 
Direct
Priority Action Area 5 - Accelerating sustainable solutions at local level 
state: 
Direct
Update: 
No
I acknowledge the above: 
Yes