News, SCHOOLS

Pres Girls Reach Final Of ECO UNESCO Competition With Lyme Disease Project

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The girls from the ‘Give An X To Ticks’ project. In front; Niamh Rahilly, Natasha Tobin and Ruth O’Connell. At back; Doireann Thomas, Mary O’Connell, Laura Scanlon and Aisling O’Connell who are taking part in the project on Lyme Disease awareness. Photo by Dermot Crean

PRESENTATION Tralee girls have advanced to the final of the ECO UNESCO competition with their project on Lyme Disease and now they need your votes.

The group of Transition Year students in the ‘Give An X To Ticks’ project have held a ‘Tick Awareness Day’ back in February to inform the public about ticks, which is how you contract the disease, and  handed out stickers to try and promote more awareness and create a conversation about the disease.

“The Tick Awareness Day went really well,” said Ruth O’Connell from the group. “We got to speak to lots of people to educate them on the dangers of tick bites. We got many signatures from people to say that after speaking to us they now knew more about Lyme Disease.”

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They’ve done a lot of work since then as Ruth explained.

“We have also been on Radio Kerry to speak about Lyme Disease. We have been to the Eco-Dens in Cork, which are the dragon’s-den-style semi-final rounds of the YEA. We felt that they went really well and since then we have found out that we have made it to the national finals in Dublin.”

“We have been in contact a lot with Tick Talk Ireland, a national organisation trying to bring more awareness to the disease, and we have distributed many leaflets for them in local GP offices and veterinary shops.

“We are  also currently in contact with local councillors discussing the issue of ticks in Kerry, and we are hoping to do something with them. Lyme Disease is a growing problem, so we will be working hard on the project for the rest of the year, especially as we come closer to the National Finals.”

To vote for the girls’ project click here scroll down to the ‘Eco Health and Well-Being’ section and then select their project, ‘Give an X to Ticks’. Then scroll to the bottom of the page and click ‘Submit’.