A 10-year-old primary school student has been crowned Young Nature Champion for 2024 for an insightful film about Manx bees.
Poppy Christian’s entry was selected as the overall winner in the competition, led by UNESCO Biosphere Isle of Man in collaboration with Love Tech Isle of Man, Isle of Man Examiner, Manx Ornithological Society, and Manx Wildlife Trust, which encouraged young people to explore the wonders of nature and share their favourite observations.
Poppy, whose film captured the life of the bees in her garden in Ballaugh, including some beautiful close up footage, said:
'It feels good to win, and I will definitely enter again.'
The competition, which ran throughout the spring and summer months, invited young people, aged 21 or under, to share pieces of writing, short films, or audio recording of their discoveries within the world’s only entire Biosphere nation; you can explore all finalists’ entries on the Biosphere website.
Clare Barber MHK, Minister for Environment, Food, and Agriculture, said:
'We are so fortunate to live in this wonderful Biosphere reserve with so much to see and do and it has been fantastic to see such genuine passion for it from our young people.'
Runners-up Darcie Duggan, 7, Tiffany Luu, 15, and Austin Rogerson, 11, were all commended for their entries, which included a poem about Manx wildlife and an underwater film exploring life in the seas surrounding the island, which make up 85% of the Biosphere.
Darcie said:
'The animals I encountered made me feel inspired and the competition allowed me to share this with my friends. I feel proud to be a runner-up and it makes me feel like I can do anything.'
Meanwhile, Eugene Mildwaters won the Manx Ornithological Society’s Bird Category with a beautifully illustrated piece about a visit to the Manx BirdLife Point of Ayre National Reserve, with Kynen Davies finishing runner-up for his entry about the adventures of geese.
The judges gave a special mention to Ballaugh School and their teacher Vicky Townend who sent some notable entries following trips to Manx BirdLife’s reserve at the Point of Ayre.
