British International School of Charlotte Students Tackle Local Issues on A Global Scale At The United Nations

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Aug 03, 2017, 10:00 ET

CHARLOTTE, N.C., Aug. 3, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Students Morgane Royer (age 14) and Ravleen Liu (age 16) from the British International School of Charlotte (BISC), a Nord Anglia Education school, presented their solutions to addressing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at a special side event of the United Nations High-Level Political Forum in New York, July 14. Royer and Liu were part of a group of 87 Nord Anglia student ambassadors who presented their action plans to high-level representatives of governments, the UN, UNICEF as well as the President of the UN General Assembly, H.E. Peter Thomson and Executive Director of UNICEF, Anthony Lake.

Presenting their results from Nord Anglia's Global Challenge this year, students committed to raising awareness and taking action on two different goals each year. Using the World's Largest Lesson, an SDG-focused teaching and learning initiative co-led by UNICEF, students raised awareness of the goals and took action towards Goals 2 and 3, which aim to end hunger and improve health and well-being respectively.

In Charlotte, Upper School students, along with Royer and Liu, led the entire student body to participate in a variety of programs that focused efforts on ending hunger and improving the quality of life for residents of an impoverished community in Charlotte. To help accomplish their goals, the school partnered with a local organization, Pop Up Produce and nearby Shamrock Gardens Elementary school. The schools' aim was to create sustainable change in their community.

Royer and Liu served as advisors to younger students by coordinating the efforts of different classes and projects, and assisting with research and planning. Students raised money to purchase seeds and soil to plant an herb garden right outside their classroom to grow vegetables.

Students also raised money to buy water barrels that will be used to nourish the planted seeds. Pop Up Produce taught students how to grow vegetables successfully in Charlotte's climate. The vegetables grown will be used locally to support people who live in food deserts in Charlotte.

In addition, students rolled out a Books, Snacks and Backpacks, a project which initially began as a food drive for children in the Shamrock Gardens community. After learning the importance of literacy and its power to break the cycle of poverty, students expanded the drive to include books and backpacks. Students also collected cutlery and made place mats for the Men's Shelter of Charlotte after they learned that it lacked access to clean eating utensils.

"This challenge is an exciting and meaningful opportunity for British International School of Charlotte students to have an impact in the local community. More importantly, proposing solutions for the 17 Sustainable Development Goals instills in them the importance of being responsible global citizens of the future," said Jude Penson, Deputy Head Teacher.

About British International School of Charlotte:
The British International School of Charlotte features an international curriculum and a personalized approach to learning. The school motivates children to be ambitious and exceed expectations through various programmes including an embedded performing arts curriculum with The Juilliard School and a new approach to teaching STEAM with MIT. The school's Global Campus gives students opportunities to participate in school and worldwide activities including expeditions to Tanzania and Switzerland. BISC is a member of Nord Anglia Education's global family of 46 premium schools in Asia, Europe, North America and the Middle East.