FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The Local 10 Eco-Hero contest is underway and we have five young environmental advocates we want you to meet.
All this week, we will introduce you to these planet-protecting middle schoolers and then you’ll have a chance to help us pick our Eco-Hero.
For this visit, we travel to Fort Lauderdale.
Like many kids in South Florida, Idan Habosha grew up going to the beach.
It’s where his love for the ocean’s creatures first began.
“And then I realized that a lot of them were becoming endangered and I was thinking I should help them by learning more about them,” Idan said.
His quest to learn more landed Idan in the marine science program at New River Middle School.
The curriculum includes one of Idan’s favorite things: shark tagging. It’s the best way to track shark movements and behaviors to better save their populations.
“Sharks are an endangered species, so it’s good to get as much information about them as possible, and that they aren’t as dangerous as people think,” he said.
Protecting those shark and preserving the delicate marine ecosystem is why this 8th grader organizes and participates in beach clean ups....collecting dozens of pounds of trash himself.
“It’s important to clean up all the trash that’s washed ashore before it goes into the ocean, before the animals eat it and ruin their digestive systems,” Idan said.
Back in the classroom, Idan hopes to inspire others. His computer generated Minecraft world is helping to educate his peers about something else he studies: the mysterious deep sea brine pools.
If he’s the Local 10 Eco-Hero, Idan would like to take his interest in conservation inland, in to wild Florida, tagging panthers instead of sharks and getting a new perspective on the sunshine state.
“I would be really excited to go out into the everglades, because it would help me gain more knowledge about what I’m living around and what’s living by me,” said Idan.
That’s because Idan knows that knowledge is key to protecting our precious planet.
“It’s good to have ideas to help make changes in the environment and it doesn’t really matter how old you are,” he said.
We will continue to introduce you to three more students this week.
Then, starting Friday night, you can vote for the student you think should be our Eco-Hero on Local10.com.