Highland museums set to celebrate World Earth Day as part of UK wide initiative
Register for free to read more of the latest local news. It's easy and will only take a moment.
TWO Highland museums and local Countryside Rangers have joined a UK-wide initiative to celebrate wildlife and nature and will host special events to mark World Earth Day this weekend.
High Life Highland’s Inverness Museum & Art Gallery (IMAG), Highland Folk Museum and Countryside Rangers are taking part to The Wild Escape, a major new project led by national art charity Art Fund.
READ ALSO: Evanton promises the Earth for big day
Pupils from Bishop Eden and St Joseph’s Primary Schools in Inverness and Newtonmore Primary have worked alongside museum staff, Countryside Rangers and with Highland artist Claire Macdonald to explore the wildlife at their local museum, discovering local animals and the importance of protecting the biodiversity on their doorstep.
To celebrate World Earth Day, special Wild Escape events will take place on Saturday April 22.
High Life Highland’s Countryside Ranger John Orr will be at IMAG from 11am to 12 for an Ask a Ranger session, with quick interactive games exploring biodiversity.
From 11am to 3pm, there will be the chance to try a simple wildlife craft with artist Claire Macdonald in and view the fantastic model boxes, animal characters and animations created by pupils participating in the Wild Escape Project.
High Life Highland’s Museums curatorial manager, Lorna Cruikshank said, “High Life Highland is delighted to take part in the national project enabling local children to find out more about the animals living in their area.
"By working with our Museums and Countryside Rangers, children have had the opportunity to see wild animals close up and to create fabulous story boxes imagining a restored natural world.
"We look forward to welcoming visitors to our Wild Escape family activities at Inverness Museum & Art Gallery and the Highland Folk Museum on Saturday April 22.”
Highland Folk Museum will display amazing animal artworks created by Newtonmore Primary School pupils and, from 11am to 3pm there will be the chance to find out more about the wildlife that lives at the museum with another of High Life Highland’s Countryside Rangers Saranne Bish.
A Wild Escape trail around the open-air site will also be organised on the day.
The initiative, supported by Arts Council England, sees hundreds of museums, galleries and historic houses taking part and is the largest ever collaboration between UK museums
Jenny Waldman, director at Art Fund, said, “I'm thrilled that Inverness Museum & Art Gallery and the Highland Folk Museum is joining hundreds of organisations from the Outer Hebrides to Folkestone to connect thousands of children with the natural world through the UK’s truly great museums. "Thanks to the invaluable support of Arts Council England, the Wild Escape will empower families and children across the UK to visit and discover our wonderful museums, whilst taking positive action to picture a better future for our wildlife."
