The Nature School in Nacka

The Nature School in Velamsund is situated on a tongue of land between the Baltic Sea and Lake Insjön. Both are interesting areas for nature and environmental studies. It is, therefore, quite natural for the Nature School to focus on the role of water in the local ecology and in people’s everyday lives.

The best classroom in the world!

"Learning Outdoors" - is both the basic idea and the methodology. Knowledge about nature starts in nature itself, hands-on. By creating a feeling for nature the students will develop an environmental awareness.

The Nature School is also an environmental education centre, a meeting point for information on environmental issues in Nacka.

The student groups usually visit the centre one day every year or every second year. We offer different themes to different age-groups. We also offer further education in outdoor and environmental studies for teachers and preschool teachers.

The Nature School is the municipality’s contribution to raising competence levels and awakening an interest in natural science in students, teachers and the general public. The Nature school is almost entirely financed by the municipality.

At junior level they study diversity in nature. They collect small animals from the lake, for example, and discover the great variety of life-forms in the lake.

At intermediate level they study food-chains in the lake or in the forest. They gain an understanding of the complexity of nature.

At secondary school level they study the ecology of the forest, both plant and animal life. They classify different life-forms. After classifying them, they make their work more visual by drawing food webs.

At upper secondary we also introduce environmental education.

Today, Velamsund is equipped with technical devices that display eco-friendly technology. They demonstrate the links between modern technology and a better environment. These installations are studied, not only by students and the general public in Stockholm, but also by groups from further afield.

In the ecological purification plant you can follow how wastewater treatment can be carried out using ecological methods. It is a working model of a biological system, an aquaculture, where plankton, tropical plants and fish cooperate to purify the sewage water. Instead of regarding sewage as a problem, we show that it can be a resource used to cultivate vegetables and in fish production.

Sewage Expo

An exhibition of sewage-disposal technology, “Avloppsexpo”, is one of the latest contributions to the centre. Look and try out is the recurring theme. Examples are shown here of different ways to treat wastewater from single households as well as technologies used in Municipal Water & Sewage. An introduction is also given to environmental and health issues, and ecocycle thinking as well as information on legal requirements. By far the most concrete element is a number of toilets which visitors are welcome to use. There are urine-sorting toilets, a vacuum toilet and a urinal that functions without added water. The target group of the Sewage Expo is the broad public.

At the exhibition you can also view a model that follows the water cycle in Nacka from Lake Mälaren through the waterworks and into our homes. You can follow how wastewater is led to the treatment plant for purification and is then released into the Baltic Sea.

Demonstrations of recycling

In the building we have a large recycling unit with different waste fractions for reuse and recycling. We also display different types of compost containers outdoors. On the roof, a solar panel has been installed for educational demonstrations.

Outdoors you can visit a recycling greenhouse. It’s a greenhouse combined with a poultry-house where hens and plants coexist. After the cultivation period, the hens are allowed into the greenhouse where they eat parasites and plant remains. Simultaneously they fertilize and cultivate the soil.

Open-house

The general public is welcome to visit the Nature School on special occasions where we offer different activities for children as well as grown-ups. These events are free of charge.

In the autumn, at harvest time, we have a harvest festival with a focus on apples, mushrooms and honey. Exhibitions and experts help people to classify the fruit and fungi that they have brought along.

A very popular event in the springtime is our series of bird walks for the general public. Everyone is welcome no matter how old and you can borrow binoculars from us!
 
Continued: A nature reserve in a historic milieu - briefly on the history of Velamsund.