The Wetland Functions Modeling Contest

Eligibility:

• The competition is open to high school students from countries participating in the Restore for Life (R4L) project (Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, Slovakia).
• There are no restrictions in the number of teams which each participating country can submit.
• To register, please complete the following Registration form.

Team composition:

Teams should have clearly defined roles, but students may take on multiple responsibilities if necessary:

• Project Manager: Responsible for overseeing the project and ensuring all team members work collaboratively and meet deadlines.
• Researchers: Responsible for researching wetlands and their ecological functions (water filtration, flood control, habitat provision, etc.).
• Model Creators: Responsible for designing and building the wetland model.
• Video Creators (Editing): Responsible for creating a short DIY video documenting the model construction process and explaining its function.

but not necessarily resuming those roles mentioned above.

Project requirements:

• Wetland Model: Each team must design and create a functional wetland model that demonstrates one of the wetland functions. The model must be made in reasonable dimensions as it could be moved by 2 students and be presented in a classroom.
• Video Documentation: Each team must create a short DIY video (maximum 5 minutes) that shows:
  • The process of creating the wetland model
  • Explanation of the wetland function the model demonstrates
  • The team’s understanding of wetland functions and the importance of floodplain restoration

Materials and budget:

• Budget: Each team is allocated maximum €200 for materials to build the wetland model. This can be used to purchase necessary supplies such as natural materials, construction materials, or any other resources required to create the model.
• Financial documents must be provided to reimburse the expenses.

Submission guidelines:

• Model: The wetland model should be functional, representing the researched wetland function clearly and creatively.
• Video: The video should be no longer than 5 minutes and must include:
  • An introduction to the wetland function being demonstrated
  • A step-by-step explanation of how the model was built
  • A conclusion on the importance of wetlands and floodplain restoration
  • The video should be well-edited, engaging, and informative.
• Submission Format: All videos must be submitted by the deadline provided by the contest organizers on the Restore4Life webpage. Late submissions may not be considered. The submission deadline will be announced via email.

Evaluation criteria:

Teams will be evaluated based on the following criteria:

• Understanding of Wetland Functions: The team’s ability to demonstrate an in-depth understanding of the ecological functions and importance of wetlands.
• Technical Accuracy: The model’s functionality in terms of the wetland function being demonstrated (e.g., how well it simulates water filtration or flood control).
• Innovation and Creativity: The originality and ingenuity of the wetland model.
• Video Quality: the ability to effectively communicate the model’s function and the team’s process, as well as the clarity, organization, and creativity of the DIY video.
• Presentation: Teams will also be evaluated on their ability to present and explain their models during the evaluation process.

The weight of each criteria is as follow:

• Wetland Functions – 30%
• Technical Accuracy – 20%
• Innovation and Creativity – 20%
• Video Quality – 15%
• Presentation – 15%

All the models/ videos submitted before the deadline will be evaluated by experts from the Restore4Life project and outside the project. After the evaluation, the first 5 projects with the highest score will be invited to present their models online in front of a panel of experts. At the end of this 2-step evaluation, the teams will be awarded according to the categories mentioned below (point 8).

The winning teams will be published on the Restore4Life website.