The interest in bats started way back in 2011 when a group of students Lee Ching-Ching, Lee Shan-Shan, Kelvina, Mohd Haziq and Shareka Vithias Logendran, led by teacher, Madam Sook-Lai Chan formed a team, The Kid Witness News (KWN), King George V Secondary School (SMK King George V). The team was formed to take part in a video clip production competition organised by Panasonic Malaysia under the Kid Witness News programme. In order to produce the video clip, the team explored several caves in the country to look into the habitats of bats and the plight faced by these creatures. Their effort won them the best script award and the video (Sang Kelawar’s Home) can be watched at https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=1395188520701423&set=vb.318726308263755&type=2&theater.
After the competition in 2011, this team was disbanded. Two years later, in 2013, they decided to show the video again as one of their activities in the Young Voices for Conservation competition organized by Treat Every Environment Special (TrEES) in partnership with AFFINBANK . Their team the Eco-Preneurs, Young Voices for Conservation, won a Special Merit Award in the competition for their work in bat conservation in their school.
At the same time Ching Ching and Shan Shan made another video about bats for the Green Film Competition 2013. They won the Grand Prize. Their video SOB (Save our Bats) can be watched at this link http://www.anugerahhijau.my/ or here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z7ksc0ba28M.
Recently, the team was given a small grant to carry out an innovation related to the conservation of bats in their school. A newly formed team has set out to design a new bat house which simulates the attic. They have fixed a web cam to the bat house to monitor it for the duration of six months. So far no bats have yet to enter the house.
It is never an easy route for Madam Chan and the students of SMK King George V in making their school a bat and eco-friendly environment, as well as spreading the love of nature among the local society. Their determination, passion, enthusiasm and creativity on this goal have turn the impossible to possible, and created a sustainable future for the local society. Their quest in the conservation of bats has become a passion and more students will join in the effort in the years to come.
