Bitou pair scoop top award at national Science fest with Organic Lifestyle project
Two Grade 10 learners of the Wittedrift High School near Plettenberg Bay have attained one of the top awards at the recent 2009 Eskom Science Festival in Stellenbosch. They took second place out of a total of 230 entries with their project on Organic Lifestyle. The creative pair will present their project at the Gastronomica festival opening on Thesen Islands in Knysna on 24 September and have been booked to accompany Gastranomica organizer Pat Mulder to the Organic Slow Food festival in Italy 2010.
The keen interest displayed by Trinka Mynhardt and Michelle Hope in organic lifestyle and food cultivation has been fired by their equally enthusiastic Life-Science teacher, Marietjie Frieslich. After last year’s Gastronomica festival, Frieslich, contacted organizer Pat Mulder, with a view to incorporate schools in the Knysna Festival that also has healthy food and organic lifestyle as objective.
The two girls, after completing a course in environmental studies, planned an organic food festival for schools in the Bitou region as part of this vision. The initiative attracted the attention of the Eskom Science Festival organisers who invited them to Stellenbosch where they – the only participants from the Eden district - scooped up the silver medal.
Cleverly sidestepping space restrictions at the festival with a projected power point presentation of the organic food cycle and its importance in our daily lives, they also brought along their own organic vegetables, their own garden and “worm farm” as well as natural pesticides that they made from onion and chili extracts.
Trinka’s awareness of organic food was first spawned by her aunt, Annemarie de Vos, an organic food and wine farmer in the Harkerville district. Michelle admits she knew next to nothing about such matters until embarking on the project. Both are now so enthused by their knowledge they want the world to know. “We want to show people, and in particular young people, how easy and fun it can be to grow your own organic vegetables,” Trinka says earnestly. “It offers great opportunities to save money on the household bill and at the same time improve your health and do your bit for the environment.”
Their next project after appearing at Gastronomica is to take their project to schools in the area and inspire the learners and their families to start “farming organically” at their homes.
Gastronomica 2009 will start off on Thursday 24 September with a special event on Thesen Islands. “The Food Theatre” will feature unique food stalls, exhibitions and entertainment all centred around the theme of good, clean and fair food.
PHOTO CAPTION :
Trinka Mynhardt and Michelle Hope of Wittedrift High School took one of the top awards at the recent Eskom Science Festival in Stellenbosch with a silver medal for their project on organic food growing. They will present their project and introduce their products at the opening event of this year’s Gastranomica festival in Knysna on 24 September.
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