Researching for our wonderful planet Earth: the ZOE team at Planet Earth Day
On Sunday, April 27, 2025, in celebration of International Earth Day, the Planet Earth Day event took place at the GeoCentre of the University of Vienna.
The project team from ZOE (Zoonosis Emergence across Degraded and Restored Forest Ecosystems) participated in the Marketplace of Science with their booth titled “Wild & Important: How the Health of Animals, Forests, and Humans is Connected.”
The aim of the stand was to explain to children aged 7-12 the connection between intact ecosystems and the health of humans and animals. On a large hidden object picture, the children first discovered where humans have a negative impact on nature, for example through deforestation, urbanization and/or pollution. The children then had the opportunity to spin a wheel of fortune and receive a map with information about parts of the ecosystem. Among other things, they learned about the role of wild animals such as ants, foxes and wild bees in the ecosystem.
To playfully contribute to a healthy ecosystem, the children then made their own plants and animals using lots of colorful materials. As the afternoon progressed, the hidden object poster became more and more colorful and the ecosystem healthier as the children diligently added trees, insects and mammals.
Further information can be found on the website of the Faculty of Earth Sciences, Geography and Astronomy .
Photos: Walter Skokanitsch
More about ZOE
ZOE – Zoonosis Emergence across Degraded and Restored Forest Ecosystems
This is custom heading element What are the relations between biodiversity loss and the risk of zoonosis, that is, the transmission of diseases between animals and humans? How can we create synergies between holistic approaches to health and biodiversity conservation to reduce the risk of zoonosis emergence? And what is the role and impact of
Project start ZOE – Zoonosis Emergence across Degraded and Restored Forest Ecosystems.
What are the links between biodiversity loss and the risk of transmission of disease carriers between animals and humans, so-called zoonoses? How can synergies between…
