Many pupils of the St Just Primary School in Cornwall grew up around beaches and learn how to best protect them from an early age.
But their school is the most westerly in the UK, and their head teacher Demelza Bolton fears they could grow up “isolated” from understanding the global effects of climate change.
“We’re quite isolated from a lot of things within the country,” she told The National. "The children don't experience other cultures like they would if they were in a school in London.
This autumn term, however, pupils in their final year at St Just, aged 11, were paired with a school in the UAE. They met over video links to talk about the coastline near their homes, and exchanged artworks and poems on the subject.
“I wanted to get children thinking on a more global scale about things,” she said.
By sharing their experiences, they learnt about the similarities and differences of living by the sea in northern Europe and the Middle East.
“Our children see Dubai as an absolute world away,” Ms Bolton said. "Although they have quite a lot of similarities because they are coastal, for the children it’s opened their eyes to the wider world."
This was part of a wider exchange of more than 400 children from 13 schools in the UK and UAE, organised by the Emirates Literature Foundation, the UK’s University of Exeter and the University of Khor Fakkan in Sharjah.
Each classroom made special visits to the sandy beaches near their school with marine scientists and artists, to learn about the rich ecosystems there and how they can be protected.
The British artist Kurt Jackson, whose landscape paintings revolve around the sea and ocean life, accompanied the children of St Just for a day out at the beach. “The arts are such a universal language for everyone,” Ms Bolton said.
A selection of the ensuing artworks and poems the children produced were published by the Emirates Literature Foundation in an anthology for Cop28, titled We Are the Ocean.
Ms Bolton was struck by “just how powerful the project has been”.
“It has really opened the children's eyes to global issues, as opposed to their own local community,” she said.
Both the Cornish and Gulf coasts have a high concentration of sea grass meadows, which are home to varied ecosystems.
Though “similar”, these ecosystems have major differences and challenges to their existence, explained Prof John Henrik Stahl, dean of the College of Marine Sciences at Khor Fakkan.
In Cornwall, seagrass meadows have been affected by the use of fertilisers on land, whose nutrients travel through the soil and are released into the sea.
This encourages algae to grow rapidly, which “smothers” the seagrass, Prof Stahl told The National. “The algae covers the meadows and they consume more of the oxygen,” he said.
Other threats included coastal development and dredging.
Pupils in the UAE were taught about the “fragile” coral reefs on their coastline. On the Gulf coast, up to 70 per cent of these have been lost since the late 1990s, due to rising temperatures, coastal development and oil spills.
“We talked about the importance of keeping ecosystems healthy and maintaining high biodiversity,” said Prof Stahl, who taught children from the UAE schools.
It was important to share the university’s research and knowledge with children and “engage” them about marine conservation. “Climate change is intergenerational so its increasingly important to keep children involved in the discussion,” he said.
“We are responsible as adults because we have the knowledge to do something about it."
The children’s curiosity about the ocean seemed endless, Prof Stahl said: “They had so many questions.”
The UAE-based children have been invited to read some of their poems at Cop28 this week, said Emirates Literature Foundation’s founder Isobel Aboulhoul.
“The students and teachers will have opportunities to be part of Cop28 and feel that their voices are heard,” she told The National.
Among these is a performance on Friday to an audience of 3,000 people in the summit’s Green Zone in at Expo City Dubai. This will be alongside a stage production by the Theatre of Others, which is inspired by the University of Exeter’s flagship project for Cop28 entitled We Are The Possible: 12 Poems for 12 Days at Cop28.
While preparing the anthology, Mrs Aboulhoul was struck by how unique every poem and artwork was, and how much the children had grasped from the workshops. “The children understood how much we rely on the ocean to keep our atmosphere healthy,” she said.
She hoped the frank and candid nature of their voices would make an impact at Cop28. “Children are very clear-sighted and able to express themselves without the politeness that we learn as adults. I love that truthfulness about them,” she said.
The project was also devised to support 79 per cent of teachers who want to educate others about climate change but say they do not have the knowledge to do so.
Anita Wood, lecturer at the University of Exeter, said she hoped the project would teach children about their local marine environment but also stress that “they are not alone”.
“All the children in our programme are connected by one ocean,” she told The National.
“Working together has given them a better understanding of themselves, their local marine environment and the knowledge that they are not alone in wanting a better future where our planet and those who live on it can thrive."
Cecilia Manosa Nyblon, the project’s director at the University of Exeter, said the project connected “facts, findings, and feelings” by bringing together arts and science.
“These narratives are brought to life through the arts to embolden us to imagine and take action to forge a liveable future,” she said.
Dark Souls: Remastered
Developer: From Software (remaster by QLOC)
Publisher: Namco Bandai
Price: Dh199
Lowest Test scores
26 - New Zealand v England at Auckland, March 1955
30 - South Africa v England at Port Elizabeth, Feb 1896
30 - South Africa v England at Birmingham, June 1924
35 - South Africa v England at Cape Town, April 1899
36 - South Africa v Australia at Melbourne, Feb. 1932
36 - Australia v England at Birmingham, May 1902
36 - India v Australia at Adelaide, Dec. 2020
38 - Ireland v England at Lord's, July 2019
42 - New Zealand v Australia in Wellington, March 1946
42 - Australia v England in Sydney, Feb. 1888
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How to tell if your child is being bullied at school
Sudden change in behaviour or displays higher levels of stress or anxiety
Shows signs of depression or isolation
Ability to sleep well diminishes
Academic performance begins to deteriorate
Changes in eating habits
Struggles to concentrate
Refuses to go to school
Behaviour changes and is aggressive towards siblings
Begins to use language they do not normally use
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Stage 2
1. Mathieu van der Poel (NED) Alpecin-Fenix 4:18:30
2. Tadej Pogacar (SLV) UAE Team Emirates 0:00:06
3. Primoz Roglic (SLV) Jumbo-Visma 0:00:06
4. Wilco Kelderman (NED) Bora-Hansgrohe 0:00:06
5. Julian Alaphilippe (FRA) Deceuninck-QuickStep 0:00:08
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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The specs
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- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Specs
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Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
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ENGLAND SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Jack Butland, Jordan Pickford, Nick Pope
Defenders: John Stones, Harry Maguire, Phil Jones, Kyle Walker, Kieran Trippier, Gary Cahill, Ashley Young, Danny Rose, Trent Alexander-Arnold
Midfielders: Eric Dier, Jordan Henderson, Dele Alli, Jesse Lingard, Raheem Sterling, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Fabian Delph
Forwards: Harry Kane, Jamie Vardy, Marcus Rashford, Danny Welbeck
Tips for job-seekers
- Do not submit your application through the Easy Apply button on LinkedIn. Employers receive between 600 and 800 replies for each job advert on the platform. If you are the right fit for a job, connect to a relevant person in the company on LinkedIn and send them a direct message.
- Make sure you are an exact fit for the job advertised. If you are an HR manager with five years’ experience in retail and the job requires a similar candidate with five years’ experience in consumer, you should apply. But if you have no experience in HR, do not apply for the job.
David Mackenzie, founder of recruitment agency Mackenzie Jones Middle East
What sanctions would be reimposed?
Under ‘snapback’, measures imposed on Iran by the UN Security Council in six resolutions would be restored, including:
- An arms embargo
- A ban on uranium enrichment and reprocessing
- A ban on launches and other activities with ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons, as well as ballistic missile technology transfer and technical assistance
- A targeted global asset freeze and travel ban on Iranian individuals and entities
- Authorisation for countries to inspect Iran Air Cargo and Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines cargoes for banned goods
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
Janet Yellen's Firsts
- In 2014, she became the first woman to lead the US Federal Reserve
- In 1999, she became the first female chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers
Vidaamuyarchi
Director: Magizh Thirumeni
Stars: Ajith Kumar, Arjun Sarja, Trisha Krishnan, Regina Cassandra
Rating: 4/5
The five pillars of Islam
Tewellah by Nawal Zoghbi is out now.
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Drishyam 2
Directed by: Jeethu Joseph
Starring: Mohanlal, Meena, Ansiba, Murali Gopy
Rating: 4 stars
Thank You for Banking with Us
Director: Laila Abbas
Starring: Yasmine Al Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El Basha, Ashraf Barhoum
Rating: 4/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Wonka
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Six large-scale objects on show
- Concrete wall and windows from the now demolished Robin Hood Gardens housing estate in Poplar
- The 17th Century Agra Colonnade, from the bathhouse of the fort of Agra in India
- A stagecloth for The Ballet Russes that is 10m high – the largest Picasso in the world
- Frank Lloyd Wright’s 1930s Kaufmann Office
- A full-scale Frankfurt Kitchen designed by Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky, which transformed kitchen design in the 20th century
- Torrijos Palace dome
10 tips for entry-level job seekers
- Have an up-to-date, professional LinkedIn profile. If you don’t have a LinkedIn account, set one up today. Avoid poor-quality profile pictures with distracting backgrounds. Include a professional summary and begin to grow your network.
- Keep track of the job trends in your sector through the news. Apply for job alerts at your dream organisations and the types of jobs you want – LinkedIn uses AI to share similar relevant jobs based on your selections.
- Double check that you’ve highlighted relevant skills on your resume and LinkedIn profile.
- For most entry-level jobs, your resume will first be filtered by an applicant tracking system for keywords. Look closely at the description of the job you are applying for and mirror the language as much as possible (while being honest and accurate about your skills and experience).
- Keep your CV professional and in a simple format – make sure you tailor your cover letter and application to the company and role.
- Go online and look for details on job specifications for your target position. Make a list of skills required and set yourself some learning goals to tick off all the necessary skills one by one.
- Don’t be afraid to reach outside your immediate friends and family to other acquaintances and let them know you are looking for new opportunities.
- Make sure you’ve set your LinkedIn profile to signal that you are “open to opportunities”. Also be sure to use LinkedIn to search for people who are still actively hiring by searching for those that have the headline “I’m hiring” or “We’re hiring” in their profile.
- Prepare for online interviews using mock interview tools. Even before landing interviews, it can be useful to start practising.
- Be professional and patient. Always be professional with whoever you are interacting with throughout your search process, this will be remembered. You need to be patient, dedicated and not give up on your search. Candidates need to make sure they are following up appropriately for roles they have applied.
Arda Atalay, head of Mena private sector at LinkedIn Talent Solutions, Rudy Bier, managing partner of Kinetic Business Solutions and Ben Kinerman Daltrey, co-founder of KinFitz
