by Jeffrey Troyer
On Tuesday, March 19th, 19 IB-2 GESM students embarked on a trip to the Las Piñas-Parañaque Wetland Park to carry out field work. The inquiry questions were centered on soil, sand and water samples surveyed from the site.
The focal point of the visit was to continue our support and learn more about this critically important environmental hotspot while being able to conduct field work. As GESM is a UNESCO school, the LPPW, a UNCESCO supported and identified conservation area, has extra significance. Officially named Las Piñas-Parañaque Habitat and Ecotourism Area, it is home to an estimated 47 migratory bird species, including the critically endangered Philippine Duck, as well as mudflats, mangroves, ponds, lagoons and mixed beach forests. GESM students, under close supervision of the park staff, carefully collected samples to be analyzed both on-site and back at the school laboratory.
In addition to gaining awareness and knowledge of this environmentally sensitive and important area of Manila, the trip greatly enhanced the students’ preparedness for the upcoming IBDP exams this April and May.