At our meeting on 7th December 2022, Charter President Di Collins gave a presentation on the history and scope of our club’s signature project: Magnifying Microscopes.
This project all started when, as a member of the Karrakatta Club, Di heard the WA Chief Scientist Prof. Lyn Beazley give one of her wonderful addresses. A few key pieces of information struck a chord: that WA is a biodiversity hot spot, and that we have a shortfall of some 30,000 people annually going on to study science at a higher level. Lyn wanted all students in WA to have access to a magnifying microscope to stimulate a love of science at an early age.
This was in the first year of our club’s existence, around September 2009, and Di was the Charter President. She thought it might be a nice project for the Club to become involved with, not imagining it would become such a long term commitment!
Lyn was speaker at an Order of Australia Dinner two weeks later and Di spoke to her there about the Magnifying microscopes. Meetings were set up with our initial project manager and Di with Lyn, John Clarke (CEO of the Science Teachers Association of WA) and a representative from WaterCorp. They agreed to trial a set of 30 units with students at Coolbinia Primary School.
After a few teething problems were ironed out, it was decided that it was impossible to provide a microscope for every student in a school, thus a class set of 30 microscopes was set. Our club sponsored 30 microscopes each to 4 schools, holding an official Launch of the project on World Water Day, 22nd March 2010, with the Lyn Beazley, John Clarke, the then DG, Rotarians and other dignitaries, teachers, students, etc. A letter of Support was sent to us from the WA State Governor, His Excellency Dr. Ken Michael extolling the virtues of the project.
Right at the start, Lyn organised for Water Corp to sponsor a small, activity booklet for higher grades (6 and 7) as the microscopes project fits in very well with their schools waterwise program. This booklet is now downloaded from our Microscopes in Schools website.
The project’s success was due to its heavy promotion by all involved. The Chief Scientist promoted it wherever she went. Di sent out copious amounts of emails and information to all manner of folk and organisations. Watercorp promoted it by going into schools with their sets of microscopes. STAWA and John Clarke promoted it at conferences, to schools and teachers, and it went on and on.
At the end of the last Rotary year we had provided around 24,000 units to some 800 schools, 1 junior naturalist Group, the Sydney Institute of Marine Science, 2 Environmental Centres, the Talented and Gifted students’ program in the wheatbelt, Student teachers at Curtin Uni, a number of Home School families, and various other groups.
They have been sponsored by 135 Rotary Clubs, 1 Rotaract Club, 1 Friend of the Rotary Club of Belmont, a Naturalist Group, the Sydney Institute of Marine Science, 9 corporations and 11 individuals, including dozens of schools in the wheatbelt and in a number of overseas countries such as Thailand, India, Africa, Singapore etc funded by our members Sheila Cheng and LAU Eng Seng.