Students' book captures carbon-cautious audience

SOUTH WESTERN TIMESSouth Western Times
Camera IconAuthors James De Grussa, 15, left, and Robert Gatti, 16, right, met Mines and Petroleum Minister Bill Marmion and Japanese Weekend School students Haruki Robinson and Megumi Seta in Perth and showed the translated book. Credit: South Western Times

Students in Japan will be reading the work of a Brunswick primary school group after a book about carbon capture was translated into Japanese.

A Day in the Life of a Carbon Atom: Starring Adom was written three-years-ago by more than 20 Year 6 and 7 students at St Michael's Catholic Primary School as a way of explaining carbon capture and storage.

It received State Government funding to be published and was launched at the school by Mines and Petroleum Minister Bill Marmion last year.

The book has already been used in British and Canadian schools, and its Japanese translation will allow its use in a country aiming for a 20 per cent reduction in carbon emissions by 2030.

The translation was launched at the Japanese Weekend School in Perth on Saturday where two of the book's authors met students.

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"It was a pleasure being up in Perth with the Japanese students and talking about the CarbonKids program," Robert Gatti, now 16, said.

"It does take me back and it's a bit surreal that this has happened. It's pretty cool."

James De Grussa, now 15, said the book had turned out better than they expected and everyone involved was proud.

"We're just a bunch of kids who went to a little school in Brunswick, country kids and no one would expect this for us," he said.

Mr Marmion described the book as "ingeniously simple but effective" and said its translation was timely, adding carbon capture and storage technology being pioneered in WA could help Japan achieve their emissions target.

"It was a pleasure being up in Perth with the Japanese students and talking about the CarbonKids program" - Robert Gatti

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