Gwacheon science museum hosts climate program with seven national institutes

The National Gwacheon Science Museum will hold a special climate-change program for elementary school students on Oct. 3, drawing on researchers from seven national institutes, the science ministry said Tuesday.

The free program runs at the museum's natural history hall, with sessions grouped under the themes of culture and plants, animals, and safety.

In the morning session, the National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage will present on protecting national heritage, the National Institute of Horticultural and Herbal Science will speak on how a changing climate alters the fruits and vegetables people eat, and the Korea National Arboretum will discuss signals of climate stress in plants.

The afternoon turns to animals: the National Institute of Biological Resources will talk about the country's tree frogs and pit vipers, the National Institute of Animal Science will present on livestock research into climate change, and the National Institute of Fisheries Science will ask where fish go as the seas warm. The National Biological Resources researcher Min-seok Do, known on YouTube as "Snake Frog Uncle," will give that session's lecture.

The day closes with a safety session led by the National Fire Research Institute on chemical safety in schools.

Each of the three sessions is open to 25 students in grades one through six, for a total of 75 places, and participation is free. Online reservations open at 10 a.m. on Sept. 29 and close at 5 p.m. on Oct. 2 on the museum's website. Same-day walk-in entry will be allowed if seats remain after advance booking closes.

"Climate change is connected to many areas of our lives, from the fruits and vegetables we eat to the animals and plants around us, the sea and our national heritage," said Lee Chung-won, director of the National Gwacheon Science Museum. "I hope that through vivid stories told by researchers from various fields, this becomes an opportunity to look at climate change from a new perspective and to observe and think about the changes around us for ourselves."