In addition to preparing educational materials and handling promotion and photo-taking tasks, OWLHK’s internship also gave me the opportunity to learn ecological knowledge from experts. The most unforgettable experience was taking photos for the “Stream Beetle Citizen Science Exploration Activity”, allowing me to capture the movement of water insects through the camera and understand more about Hong Kong’s freshwater ecology. As I was looking for water beetles with participants among the rocks, I was amazed by the river’s biodiversity!

I am grateful to join the OWLHK family, where I had the opportunity to learn from experienced mentors and led activities by myself.

The most unforgettable experience for me was the first time I led a forest walk activity alone. There was a part of the activity called "Forest Walk," where participants needed to listen carefully to the sounds of nature. "Everyone, close your eyes, take a deep breath, breathe in, breathe out..." I nervously imitated the tone of my mentor, and found that the students were really engaged and followed my speech’s pace. After quieting down, the sound of the flowing stream, rustling leaves, singing birds and chirping insects, all of these that we often overlooked in our daily lives were amplified. After the activity, most of the students shared their most memorable part was that "silent yet noisy" Forest Walk. Hearing their profound reflections and respect for nature moved me so deeply. Perhaps this is the charm of education.

Before the internship, I never thought I would fall in love with Hong Kong’s ecology in such a way. In those three months or so as an intern, I witnessed different facets of Hong Kong’s nature and experienced its biodiversity first-hand, from spotting spider wasps dragging spiders to witnessing horseshoe crabs mating. OWLHK provided us with ample learning experiences, from assisting in activities to leading environmental education activities by ourselves. I felt really gratified seeing participants being astonished by the local ecology. Being part of OWLHK as an intern not only let me practice environmental education, but I also felt very much being educated and changed as well.

Through the internship in OWLHK, I have understood more about environmental education from theory to practice. I have met a group of people in Hong Kong who love nature and are full of passion for environmental education. I learned about how Hong Kong environmental educators use their profession to help students and the public learn and appreciate nature through a variety of programs, ranging from indoor activities such as board games to outdoor learning. I was shocked to see the tutors introducing each species clearly and skillfully in eco-tours and shore cleaning activities. I have also learned a lot of ecological knowledge and how to use more diverse, interactive and innovative ways in hope of having more people care about the environment.

Throughout the summer internship programme in OWLHK, the "Law of the Forest" board game environmental education activities remained fresh in my memory. Using board games as an educational tool is an effective method to introduce serious environmental education into schools in a fun way. Unlike ordinary “spoon-fed” lectures, board games can make players more involved in the game. “Law of the Forest” illustrated different native species, such as Leopard Cat and Giant Wood Spider, and they have to be put into different habitats including secondary forests. Players learn about the biodiversity of Hong Kong and the significance of maintaining ecological equilibrium through the game. Environmental conservation is not only a personal matter. Through high-quality environmental education, it can become a mission to be passed on to the next generation.

One of the most impressive things I learnt was how to put concepts of environmental education into practice. In order to let students learn about local forest and biodiversity, the team spent lots of time and effort in designing and organizing every activities. Different from old school rigid teaching, this can raise students’ understanding and awareness on the environment, and empower them to practice what they have learnt and teach others. To effectively implement and promote environmental education, we need education about, in, and for the environment which none of these can be omitted.

This internship allowed me to experience the whole process of environmental education from designing to implementing activities, and evaluate different activities in terms of strengths, weaknesses and effectiveness while focusing on both affection and rationality. This was very helpful to me to brainstorm and design activities by myself in the future. My most impressive experience was designing a board game with Hong Kong forest conservation as theme, which was produced and promoted successfully. When I saw players enjoying my board game while learning about ecology at the same time, I knew that applying for this internship was a right choice.