The Lotus world weavers...

No pollution… end to global warming… people respect nature… children are safe… plants can grow… we all have what we need…human rights for all…
   These are some of the wishes for the world expressed by Lotus High learners at a workshop held at the Princess Vlei Eco-centre during the school holidays last week.
Fifteen learners came together to study the relationships existing in nature at Princess Vlei, and think about what nature can teach us about healing the world and making it a better place for all beings who live in it, human, plant an animals. 
    The group started off with an exercise to create a web, exploring what makes a web strong. They then went into the natural areas around the vlei to study the relationships in nature. 
‘We observed a snail and a slime lily, and a feather indicating the bird, and a piece of glass. The slime lily benefits the snail, and the snail benefits the bird, but the broken glass benefits nothing and is     harmful,’ one group noted.
    Later, the learners discussed the different types of relationships in nature - parasitic, commensalist, and mutualist, and spoke about how these can teach us to live with nature and each other in a way that is not harmful, the benefits those who are connected.

   The learners drew mind maps to show these relationships and came up with a number of wishes for how we could create a kinder, more sustainable and just world. These were then narrowed down to 9 wishes, which the learners painted on boards to form part of the collaborative artwork that will be installed at Princess Vlei at a celebration event on October 16
    The artworks will take the form of giant webs. They will incorporated contributions of creative work of over a hundred learners from Harmony Primary, Hillwood Primary, Levana Primary, Lotus High, Muhammadeyah Primary, Primrose Park Primary and the Peter Clarke Art Centre. 
Learner’s also tie-dyed fabric to be used as part of the art work. This was a popular activity, with some learners being inspired to dye their clothes and shoe laces as well!
    The learner’s visions, and the visions of primary school learners from five schools, will be woven into a poem which will be performed by Lotus High learners on the day.
The celebration on the 16th will include a procession through from the Retreat Civic through the streets of Sasmeer estate to the eastern shore of Princess Vlei; a ceremony to install the artworks, and a performance of the River of Life by The Jungle Theatre Company. We invite members of the public to come and view the procession and the wonderful artworks. 
    We also plan to share some of the artworks in an online exhibition and a display at the Grassy Park Library at a later date. 

• This project was made possible by funding  from the City of Cape Town Grant in Aid fund and the  Hans Hoheisen Charitable Trust managed by Nedbank Private wealth.