Year 12 ESS Trip to Al Ain Zoo

On Monday 26^th January, Year 12 ESS (Environmental Systems and Societies) students went on a trip to Al Ain Zoo. Students were given a special tour by the zoo’s Head of Education Mr. Mathew Cocks who is himself a former IB ESS teacher.

The day started off with a stop at the Arabian Oryx area to talk about the late Sheikh Zayed and his contribution to conservation in the Emirates. As we moved around the zoo, many aspects of the ESS syllabus where discussed and observed in the exhibits we saw. Animal adaptations to different biomes, endangered species, genetic diversity, breeding, ethical arguments for and against zoos were all topics of discussion during the day.

We later moved onto the brand new Sheikh Zayed Learning Centre which is a magnificent work of architecture that is not yet open to the public. Students explored the exhibits about ‘People of the desert’, ‘Abu Dhabi living desert’ and ‘Sustainability in the UAE’.

The day was fabulous; the students behaved impeccably and it was finished off by getting to feed the baby giraffes.