Workshop 1 : Water
Workshop 1: Water
Become a real-life Eco Detective and help save the Waikato River!
Something mysterious has polluted the river… and YOU have been chosen to crack the case.
Across three action-packed stations, you’ll investigate clues, test water, question suspects, play sustainability games… and uncover who (or what!) is harming our wai.
Are you ready to join the mission?
Environment station
Figure out what happened.
Meet a real water scientist and dive into hands-on detective tests!
You’ll test and explore:
💧 pH (is the water happy or grumpy?)
🔁 Nitrogen & carbon cycles
🏃♂️ Runoff and pollution clues
🐟 How freshwater creatures are affected
You’ll even use eDNA kits (yep, just like real scientists!) to discover which tiny organisms are living in the water — and which ones are missing. These clues help you narrow down your list of suspects.
Economy station
Figure out how it happened.
Lights, camera… detective mode! Step onto the set of our lively mock talk show where YOU become undercover investigators.
Interview “businesses” and ask tough questions about:
💦 How they use water
♻️ What sustainability looks like for them
🏭 Their environmental footprint
Every answer is a clue. Every clue helps you piece together how pollution may have happened.
Social station
Figure out why it happened.
Enter the wild world of “The Trader” — a quirky, fast-paced sustainability game show hosted by a delightfully weird character.
Through fun challenges you’ll uncover:
🤨 Why do some people misuse water
😬 What damage this causes
🏘 How pollution affects real communities and the health of the river
Play the game, collect clues, crack the motives.
The Debrief - Solving the Mystery!
Students regroup for the final mission.
Together you’ll connect the clues from all three stations to answer:
WHAT happened?
HOW did it happen?
WHY did it happen?
You’ll earn rewards, share your discoveries, and take on your final critical-thinking challenge to complete back at school.