Northlands Primary School in Durban has welcomed a new ‘school member’—a special rhino sculpture that’s set to come to life through the creativity of students! Here’s why this ‘Project Rhino’ is such a special one:
Durban, South Africa (25 April 2024) — A wire-framed rhino stands proudly at Northlands Primary School in Durban. But, this rhino is no minimalist artwork; instead, he is part of a project in motion set to bring students closer to the plight of rhinos across Southern Africa, where their creativity will bring their school’s member of the Big 5 to life. Project Rhino has already gotten staff and students excited to put their creativity caps on, and we couldn’t think of a better way to cultivate a conservation mindset!
Part of a competition being run by Project Rhino itself—the conservation organisation that looks out for our rhino populations as well as their wildlife communities—the idea behind the competition is to ‘increase the rhino population’ in KwaZulu-Natal with the help of schools in light of World Rhino Day in September, as Gwendolyn Isaacs of Project Rhino tells Good Things Guy.
The sculpture competition is a first of its kind for KZN.
As someone who has been a Youth Ambassador for Project Rhino since she was in high school herself, Gwendolyn knows the power of change that can erupt when young people take a cause by the horns and not just on a single day.
Conservation efforts are continuous business, getting kids to undertake the project long in advance helps create a sense of commitment to conservation.
“The project has had an overwhelmingly positive response and so far has 39 rhinos signed up across KZN, from Escourt, Greytown, Pmb, Hillcrest and Durban to Ballito and Richards Bay. We have had to get more sculptures made as our initial 15 rhino found their schools so quickly,” Gwendolyn adds.
She explains that the hope is to raise the flag of awareness surrounding initiatives for rhinos, as well as fundraising to support these initiatives. With herself, her boyfriend and directors of Project Rhino making sure the rhinos are delivered to the schools, the plan is to have all the rhino wire frames delivered by the end of May.
“The fun part of it for us as a school is getting our learners involved in decorating our sculpture. This will be a whole school initiative,” Northlands Primary School’s Caroline Hockly says.
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“We are very lucky to have an incredible art teacher, Debbie Holshausen, who has a fantastic creative brain and is already coming up with all sorts of fabulous ideas. She prepared a power point presentation for our children last Friday for assembly with different ideas on what they could come up with using recycled materials to “cover” our rhino”, Caroline shares.
At Northlands, the kids have already been hard at work getting their ideas off the ground, with environmental extra mural club, the Greenhearts Club, cleverly weaving plastic bags into “plarn” to form the sculptures skin.
“Recycled plastics and tin will also allow our sculpture to withstand the sun, rain and humidity in Durban, and we hope he gets to graze for a few years in his current spot. Our families are also getting involved collecting items for us to use and they are looking forward to watching the rhino be transformed as we progress (though he is pretty beautiful just as he is!” beams Caroline.
The project’s beginning also couldn’t have come at a better time for the school, considering that their theme for April was ‘Positivity and How to Flip your Flop.
“In a way this project ties into that too—we are taking the “flop” plastic pollution/rubbish and “flipping” it to a positive, by producing something beautiful in the name of something good,”Caroline concludes.
Here are the Competition Guidelines!
- Theme: Future Rhino: Envision the future of rhinos. What might their world look like with advanced technology, sustainable living, and coexistence with humans?
- Participants: Students from all grades
- Materials: Provided wire rhino sculptures. The school to source additional recycled decorating materials.
- Judging Criteria: Creativity, adherence to the theme, use of materials, and overall visual impact. The rhino must be able to sustain all weather conditions.
- Deadline: Friday 27th September 2024
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