Green Panthers News
by Kerry DYKE
kerryd@isb.ac.th
Did we just rescue an Elephant? We did!!
We recently did an eco trip (see photos here) that involved us working at Elephants World in Kanchanaburi. There we learned about KamKaew, an elephant that was at the sanctuary and had many elephant friends, but then the owner decided to take her out and put her in a show to make money. Now she performs silly and unnatural tricks all day long for tourists who I presume are unaware of what they are really supporting. You can see some of her work here. Elephants World has been raising money to buy this elephant from the owner and get her back to the sanctuary where she clearly had a better life. They asked us if we could raise about 30,000 baht to give them enough money in total to return KamKaew back to his friends.
The students were keen to help and luckily the next day was the start of Elephant Week at ISB. The timing was perfect. The HS students already had many things planned to bring about awareness of some of the issues. ES students made 100’s of drawings and pieces of art about saving elephants to decorate the cafeteria. To raise money HS and MS students sold elephant shirts, baked goods and had people sponsor teachers or a friend to eat what some might consider ‘gross’ food such as marmite, veggie-mite, durian, and even insects, we also had Ms Indigne dress up as an elephant and give out ele hugs all to raise funds. Now we had a direct cause and on day 1 we raised 7000 baht, day 2 12,000 baht, and on day 3 we raised 21,000 baht. We currently have gone over 45,000 baht already and one more day to go. See these pics here
Elephants World was delighted to hear this news and have informed us that they are trying to have KamKaew returned on the 10th of December!
Well done to the HS and MS Elephant Ambassador teams. Your innovative and creative FUNdraising made a real difference. Thanks to the students, teachers, and parents who really came through on such short notice to support that cause.
While we are on this topic and holidays are around the corner, this is a great time to introduce you to our Elephant Education website. It is still in it’s infant stages, but there is already plenty of useful information on there to help anyone make a wiser and more animal friendly decision when choosing any sort of elephant tourism activities. We hope that the ISB community will use this site to have a positive impact on elephant tourism. Eventually we want to launch this out to the world! MS students are continuously working on the website but you can have a sneak preview if you go to Elephant Education website.
A more sustainable Villa
Since last year Green Panther students and teachers have been working in a very positive manner with Villa supermarket on how to make their store more sustainable and eco friendly. On Friday, November 21, 2014 Villa came to ISB and we had reached some agreements to be implemented.
- Villa has agreed to sign the Blue List, meaning they will go completely Shark Fin Free. They also agreed to phase out the shark fin flavoured seaweed they were selling just to send the right message. Find out more on this campaign at https://www.finfreethai.org
- Villa will soon launch their green bag campaign, which was designed by ISB students. We hope that customers will be supportive of this move towards less wasteful plastic bags and using a reusable bag.
- Down the line we will be setting up a green points system whereby you can gain eco points for your sustainable shopping decisions. A green line for those bringing a reusable bag. As well, Villa is very interested in starting a community recycling center.
Shark Fin Free
This group has 3 accomplishments already this year. We recently got Villa, Tops, and UFM Fuji supermarkets to agree to sign the Blue List and become 100% Shark Fin Free. Next we are looking at Tesco, Macro, and other supermarkets.
HS Visual Art Show – on now!
Marianne DEROW
mariannd@isb.ac.th
The HS Visual Art Show will be on display in the CCT foyer until the 16th of December. It showcases visual arts from across the high school fine arts courses, including ceramics, photography and jewelry. Come along and see the installations of wonderful student work. It’s just not to be missed!
Mother Daughter Sock Hop and Dinner January 17, 2015 from 5pm to 8 pm – Tickets on sale from Dec. 8th – 17th
by Sally Plomley
splomley@gmail.com
Mother Daughter Sock Hop and Dinner January 17, 2015 from 5pm to 8 pm
Please join the Girls Scouts for their annual Mother Daughter Sock Hop on January 17 in the MPB. Tickets will be available before and after school in the ES Breezeway from December 8-17, from the CAO office or by emailing gsthailand40@gmail.com. Ticket cost is 700THB per person. This is for all girls and their mothers (no need to be a Girl Scout or attend ISB). All profits will be used to buy items for Sparrow Home and Angel’s Home. The dance is linked to a fundraising campaign, “Change for Change”, which asks our community to collect/donate change and drop it off at the Sock Hop. These funds will be added to the profits to benefit the above charities. Thanks. Girl Scouts
Grade 3 Partners with Second Chance Bangkok – Sale of their upcycled goods December 9th
by Vera Day
verad@isb.ac.th
Grade 3 Partners with Second Chance Bangkok:
Unique Service Learning Opportunity in the Elementary School
Grade 3 is forging a relationship with a local fair trade organization, Second Chance Bangkok. To have our students feel more connected to their learning outside the classroom walls. Grade 3 students will participate in an authentic learning experience becoming caring global citizens in a real world context. To help develop citizenship, responsibility, and other positive character virtues.
Tuesday December 9th, “Second Chance Bangkok” after working with Grade 3 students, will set up a sale of their upcycled goods in the ESMPR from 9:30-12:30 p.m. All parents and staff are welcome to come and purchase their beautiful goods during this visit.
PreK’s “Little Hands Making Big Change” sale to support the After The Wave (ATW) foundation – Dec. 11th & 12th
by Alyson Espinoza Diaz
alysonespinoza@gmail.com
Pre K’s “Little Hands Making Big Change” sale to support the After The Wave (ATW) foundation will take place on December 11th and 12th.
Please stop by one of our tables, either outside the ES MPR (morning only) or in the Main Cafeteria (all day).
We will sell many of the same items from last year, and also some new things including:
Folding sports chairs with the ISB logo
Books
DVDs
Boxed Card set (with Pre K artwork)
Notepads and Notebooks (with Pre K artwork)
Christmas ornaments
Beaded items (made by Pre K students)
Sweet treats
and much more
ATW supports children and their families of the Phang-na region of Thailand who were affected by the 2004 tsunami, by helping to provide basic necessities such as housing, medical needs, and school expenses. Pre K sponsors three specific children. Here’s a little information about each of the children:
Kannittha (Sai) was added to ATW in August 2013. Her birthdate is April 25, 1997. There are three kids in the family. Her parents are farmers. She likes to study music, English, and Thai. She would like to work as a school principal. She lives at the R35 school.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/afterthewave/10625994813/
Nov. 2013 Bok – Aged 11. Bok’s parents work as plantation labourers. He likes to study the Thai language, and he thinks he would like to be a teacher. There are 3 kids in the family.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/afterthewave/10625991903/
Arm does not know his parents or even know if he has siblings. He is an orphan who boards at R35. Prior to coming to R35 he lived at a temple and was raised by the monks. Arm has no memory of his parents. His only memory is of living with the monks at the temple.
Nov. 2013: Now, he stays with parents who work as farmers. He has seven brothers or sisters. He’s the youngest one. He likes to study math and Thai. He wants to be a soccer player.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/afterthewave/10625715455/
HS Wishing Tree Club Annual Backpack Drive is on now!
by Ms. Loreto Alonso, Teacher Advisor for ISB’s Wishing Tree Club
loretoa@isb.ac.th
The Wishing Tree Club is currently collecting backpacks to donate to Pakkred Babies Home. Everyone, including students, parents, staff and faculty members, can donate by taking cards from Christmas trees that are located in the HS, MS, and Business offices. In the card, there will be a list of school supplies you will have to purchase to place inside the backpack. When you take a card, please do not forget to sign your name on the sign up sheet. Here’s an online version of the sign up sheet if you’d like: https://docs.google.com/a/isb.ac.th/document/d/1026i-nWxTR4Y2f7IYvndNCrJAgvlAr9o3YXTtQiPJTo/edit?usp=sharing The due date for the backpack is on January 19th. For more information about this project, please contact Ms. Loreto Alonso at loretoa@isb.ac.th
eNewsletter Guidelines
by Tony Arnold
anthonya@isb.ac.th
ISB eNewsletters provide a valuable avenue for communication within the ISB parent community. Please see our eNewsletter guidelines below.
Submitting an announcement for publication
ISB accepts announcements from ISB families and ISB staff for potential publication in our eNewsletters. The announcements are generally intended to highlight events that occur at ISB and/or highlight information about ISB.
What to include in the announcement
• A title for your announcement
• An email contact for further information
• An image or photo (optional)
Where to submit your announcement
4publish@isb.ac.th is for announcements of interest to the entire ISB community.
tinaratr@isb.ac.th is for Elementary School (ES) announcements of interest to ES families.
maurilib@isb.ac.th is for Middle School (MS) announcements of interest to MS families.
vijitl@isb.ac.th is for High School (HS) announcements of interest to HS families.
Your announcement will be submitted to the appropriate Principal and/or to our Marketing Director for review. ISB reserves the right to determine which announcements will and will not be published, and to edit announcements that are approved for publication.
Frequency of eNewsletter mailings
The ISB eNewsletter that is for the entire community is sent out on Thursdays. Announcements for potential publication in this newsletter must be received by noon on Thursdays.
The ES, MS, and HS eNewsletters are sent out on Fridays. Announcements for potential publication in these newsletters must be received by noon on Fridays.