Otago Students Win BIG Science Adventure

Otago Students Win Freemasons BIG Science Adventure to Greenland

Three Otago Girls High pupils were announced as the winners of the 2007 Freemasons BIG Science Adventures secondary school DVD competition at an event in Dunedin tonight, winning the grand prize of an expedition to the UK and remote eastern Greenland.

Year 13 students Peggy Russell, Annika Metua, and Susan Smirk beat five other finalist teams from around the country at a week-long film school this week, held at the University of Otago's world-class Natural History Film Unit. The other teams were from Pakuranga College, Burnside High in Christchurch, Tauranga Girls College, Craighead Diocesan School in Timaru, and Nelson College.

Each of the finalist teams was assigned a film mentor at the film school in Dunedin, the purpose of which was to select the winning team and to help up-skill them for the challenges of filming overseas.

The Otago team's film on sex determination in fish - "Spotty: the different" - grabbed the judges' attention with its quirky originality. Chair of the judging panel Alison Ballance said, "This film grabbed your interest and held it to the end. It was original, charming, and quirky. They took a story-telling gamble which could have been risky, but paid off in the end."

Grand Master of Freemasons New Zealand, Mr Barry McLaggan, said, "We are sending these wonderful young women and their film mentor and teacher to Greenland, which is without doubt one of the areas of the planet most affected by climate change. They'll be able to see the alarming effects first hand rapidly melting glaciers and threats to the indigenous people's lifestyle. They will bring their experiences back to us by filming what they see and producing a ten-minute documentary which will be launched at New Zealand science's premier event, the Science Honours Dinner, this year to be held in Dunedin on 20 November.

"The Freemasons are delighted to be able to offer this opportunity to these very talented students and in so doing to help draw attention to the dangers posed by rapid changes to our climate.

"I'd like to thank all the students and teachers who have participated in these competitions who have given us such fantastic science films. We will be announcing the details of the next competition in September. The theme will be Charles Darwin and the theory of evolution. Details will be on the Royal Society website in a few weeks time."

During their 7-24 August expedition, the team will be accompanied by their film mentor Jinty MacTavish, teacher Wendy Dunn, and a representative of the Royal Society. They will first spend a week in the UK where they will investigate some of the initiatives there to respond to climate change, such as a housing project in South East London which provides a unique climate friendly model for urban development.

Once in Greenland, the group will set up camp north of the remote town of Kulusuk, where the dramatic site of icebergs calving from the glacier can be seen. In the larger coastal town of Tasiilaq the group will farewell veteran New Zealand adventurer Graham Charles and his Adventure Philosophy team on a 900km journey by kayak and kite across the country's wilderness of snow and ice. A boat trip will take the Freemasons BIG Science Adventures team to Ikateq, a small abandoned hunting village that is a stark illustration of the effects of climate change on the local communities in Greenland.

The Royal Society of New Zealand wishes to express its gratitude to Freemasons New Zealand for their very generous sponsorship of the competition, which gives students life-changing experiences, a real understanding of science and a lot of fun into the bargain.

Thanks also to British Airways who have consistently given assistance with air travel and to the Apple Computer Division of Renaissance Limited, who have again loaned the students laptops. These are 'big ticket' items which are essential for the students' work.

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