Students for the fungi kingdom! They ask the president for schools to include fungi in their classes

In a display of enthusiasm and concern for biodiversity, a group of 25 Year 4 pupils from Colegio Pucón sent a letter to President Gabriel Boric,Formally requesting that teaching about fungi be included in the national school curriculum..

Under the slogan “flora, fauna and funga should be known equally”, these young environmental advocates expressed their wish for mycological education to be accessible to everyone.

Fungi form a kingdom distinct from that of plants and animals; they are essential for nutrient recycling on the planet; they decompose matter; they associate with plants in symbiotic relationships; they can be used as sustainable materials and, moreover, they have medicinal properties and ancestral uses.

The group of girls and boys, who recentlyThey created the viral “Hongo Rap”.In their letter, they argue that learning about these organisms would not only provide a greater understanding of nature, but also a stronger awareness of the importance of conserving them. “How can we protect something if we don’t know it?” they write.

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That the boys and girls feel grateful and appreciate the opportunity to learn about the fungi kingdom fills us with joy. But what truly makes us proud and fills us with hope is that their wish extends to the rest of the students in our country. This letter, written by them, seeks to bring about changes in education, so that all students in Chile have the same opportunity as they do,” says Constanza Salas, the class’s head teacher.

During this school year, the course has taken an interdisciplinary approach to the role of fungi in the ecosystem and has carried out field trips, as well as being one of the schools that took part in the educational programme of theFungi Kingdom Festival,where the educational resources of theFungi Foundation, together with field guides to Chilean fungi, donated by that institution.

“We hope that your letter will be taken into consideration and that the importance of including the funga in the education system will be recognised, thus enabling future generations to connect from an early age with the vast diversity of organisms on our planet,” explains Daniela Torres, Director of Programmes and Office in Chile at Fundación Fungi. She adds: “Throughout all these years, we have neglected an entire kingdom of life. Fungi act as fundamental connectors in nature, between living and non-living beings, and the time has come to recognise their importance as such.”

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The Fundación Fungi, the first NGO dedicated to the conservation of the fungi kingdom, has created a free mycological curriculum for teachers and educators, available atwww.fungieducation.orgas part of their Education programme. The aim is for all students to be able to learn about fungi in the same way as they learn about plants and animals. The platform also offers recorded workshops on how to teach the curriculum lessons.

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Find the Full letter here.