Longniddry Primary’s environmental campaign is taking pupils from the school grounds to the silver screen.
"We are really excited that a major tourist attraction will feature our film," Yvonne Hart
‘Bubbles Beat Balloons’ was launched by Longniddry Primary School in June 2018. The school’s primary 4 class started a project to encourage bubbles as a more environmentally-friendly option for mass releases instead of balloons, which leave plastic litter that endangers wildlife. This grew into a school-wide environmental campaign. The children have spread their message far and wide – including to First Minister Nicola Sturgeon who signed the ‘Bubbles Beat Balloons’ Pledge in March 2019 when p4 pupil Ellie visited the Scottish Parliament.
As part of their campaign, the children worked with independent film-maker Jonathan Charles on a ‘Bubbles Beat Balloons’ documentary to showcase their passion for environmental matters and encourage others to join in. The film premiered at a school assembly on 14 June and was screened at the Scottish Seabird Centre at the same time. The Centre was so impressed by the documentary and its message that it has now undertaken to screen it for visitors in the Discovery Centre alongside other professional and educational films. Longniddry Primary School has also entered their campaign in the RSPB ‘Nature of Scotland’ 2019 awards.
Yvonne Hart from Longniddry Primary School said: "Learning at Longniddry has always had a strong eco- and rights-respecting focus. In ‘Bubbles Beat Balloons’ our youngsters have taken a stance on an issue they are passionate about and are showing that all of us can change habits to make a difference to our environment and planet.
"Film is a powerful way to spread the children's message. We are really excited that a major tourist attraction will feature our film and the message of ‘Bubbles Beat Balloons’ will show how passionate East Lothian's youngsters are about their world."
Susan Davies, CEO of the Scottish Seabird Centre said: “The damaging effects of plastic in our marine environment, and on Seabirds, are more visible today than ever before. It is heartening to see the environmental awareness, passion and commitment by young people to make a positive difference. We are delighted to feature the ‘Bubbles Beats Balloons’ film in the Scottish Seabird Centre. We congratulate the young people for challenging us all to think about our own behaviours and in finding ways to convey their message to a broad audience.”