Source: Chippenham People
Schoolboy Tom Dymond has won Sheldon School its own piece of the Amazon after winning a prestigious competition run by an environmental charity.
Twelve year old Tom beat hundreds of other children from across the UK to successfully complete a video rainforest quiz set by the charity, Cool Earth.
He spent the summer researching the answers to the quiz questions, which included, which big cat has the strongest bite, and what kind of nose does a Tapir have.
He also had to write an essay about why he feels the rainforests should be saved.
He said: “It took me ages to do everything for the competition, but I felt really good writing about the rainforest. When I was told I’d won I couldn’t believe it. It felt amazing.”
His efforts have won his school an acre of endangered Amazon rainforest. Plus he won a flip camera, Cool Earth T shirt, and a glossy rainforest book by the wildlife photographer Thomas Marent.
The preserved acre will prevent up to 260 tonnes of CO2 from entering the atmosphere. Sheldon School will also receive a letter from the village they are supporting along with photos of the community.
Matthew Owen, Cool Earth director: “At Cool Earth we know how important it is to educate children about deforestation of the rainforests, as well as showing them what they can do to help stop it. By winning this competition Tom has shown that there are many children who are very aware of the problems the rainforests face.”