www.patana.ac.th
PATANA NEWS
Friday 3rd September 2021
The Importance of Core Values Mr Mills’ First Blog of the eYar
By Secondary Principal Matt Page 2 Seddon
Also in thisMissue... Primary Musician of the Month Design Council - Relaunch Tiger Shop Reflections Virtual University Fair
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Bangkok Patana is a not-for-profit IB World School accredited by CIS
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The Importance of Core Values Matt Seddon, Secondary Principal
I
am incredibly excited and humbled to join this community as Secondary Principal because Bangkok Patana is a school I have admired and respected for many years.
I join you after 10 years leading and serving the Kellett community in Hong Kong, a school which in many ways is a spiritual sister to Patana; a fellow member of FOBISIA, but also a non-profit, non-selective school. This means that whilst the corridors and people are different – the school already feels remarkably familiar. Whilst going through the rigorous interview process for this role, I found one question particularly easy to answer. I was asked was to describe my personal values. I have not yet unpicked this with Matt Mills, but I wonder if he was surprised by the speed and clarity of my answer? I told him that my core values are: •
Community
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Empathy
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Hope
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Perspective
I was able to answer this quickly because I have put aside time to think about and articulate my core values. They are written on the wall of my office and they are included in my email signature. I use them as a moral compass to help me make tough decisions, ensuring that that my responses are always authentic. I have read that only 1 in 10,000 people can define their core values in this way. If you have not yet done so, I wonder if you would enjoy looking through this (non-exhaustive) list to choose your own? Some motivation: research has found that people who can articulate their core values and actively use them enjoy a sustained well-being boost! The single biggest reason I was attracted to working at Bangkok Patana was the alignment of its values with my own. I would like to take this opportunity to explain to you a bit more about my core values. COMMUNITY I have always been fascinated by the phrase “it takes a village to raise a child.” To me, it conjures up images of a quaint village school whose teachers are neighbours of the families in their class. The transient nature of many international schools means that they struggle to have this neighbourly trust, but Patana is different. Patana is the very definition of a true community school. It should come as no surprise to you, then, that working with the community is important to me – ensuring that we trust one another as villagers working together to raise our children. I really believe that any school community which prioritises relationships will realise that there is no 'them and us' ... there is only 'us'! EMPATHY Empathy is defined as the act of “stepping into another person’s shoes in order to better understand that person,” and Stanford neuroscientist Jamil Zaki went even further with his wonderful description calling empathy the “psychological super glue” which holds a commu2
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nity together. Within the context of a school, where the health of its community has a direct impact on the development and achievement of its students, a foundation built on empathy appears to me to be critical. This has never been truer than in the middle of a global pandemic! PERSPECTIVE Perspective is important to me thanks to a career in Secondary education, as there are few workplaces with such a diverse range of people. If you work at a bank, you work with other mathematically minded people, if you work at a newspaper, you are working with people who like to write. Of course, these are huge generalisations, but secondary schools require such a wide range of specialisms – we have artists, musicians, scientists, economists, linguists ….and that is before we even begin to celebrate one another's religion, sexuality, and gender. Understanding the perspectives of this diverse community in an international Secondary school is even more important, because our families come from such a broad range of cultures and backgrounds. How many times have we been in a conversation where we were speaking the same language but meaning quite different things? Taking the time to consider one another's perspective allows us to better understand what we are saying to each other and what we are really thinking. HOPE And finally, hope. What is my hope for the future? Of course, I am passionate about education, and my hope is that every one of our students will achieve their own personal academic excellence. However, this is not enough for me. I believe in people. I believe that people can make a difference to this world. I believe that our community can make a difference to this world. I believe that together, our “village” has a responsibility to provide our students with the skills, opportunities, and passion to make a real difference in the modern world. That for me is hope. I am really looking forward to getting to know you all in person over the coming weeks, months and years, and am looking forward to restrictions allowing us to meet in person soon. I have great expectations for our community. I suspect that we are completely aligned on this.
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PRIMARY MUSICIAN OF THE MONTH Honoka Katayama H
onoka is a virtuoso ukulele player from Hawai’i, born in Japan in 1998, she moved to Hawai’i when she was eight years old. She became well-known in Hawai’i as part of a ukulele duo with her friend, Azita, when they won a ukulele competition in 2013, aged just 15. She has recently begun a career as a solo artist, writing and recording original songs. She has performed concerts across the United States and recently held a fund-raising virtual concert with Propeller US, raising money for Hugs Hawaii, an organisation that supports families who have children that have been diagnosed with life-threatening illnesses. Listen to her music on YouTube here.
Join your ECAs Live! T
he September ECA calendar is now online! There is a huge variety to choose from; healthy cooking, zumba, football and tennis skills, musical theatre, K-Pop dance, books and cakes, Minecraft and much more. Find it all online in Firefly here. There is sure to be an ECA to teach you something new, get you fit or maintain your skills!
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All in the Family! Narida (Nia) Ekaraphanich, 6D My brother, sister and I were fortunate to have taken part in writing poems for Beyond Words Literary Magazine, edited and written by children. Poems by by brother Narapong (Nate), 3D and sister Nayada (Neave), 3K can be found here. I came up with a COVID-19 poem on the following page here.
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Design Council – Relaunch Jiwon Yoo, 13D and Tea Lonnback,13C
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hree Year 13 students who are eager about Design + Technology and intend on pursuing careers in architecture and engineering have relaunched the student-led Design Council. Founded in 2018, the Design Council aims to create a better school environment and work with the local community by solving problems through design. The Design Council, led by Jiwon Yoo, Gere Worarittichai and Petch Lomtakul, have recruited a group of Year 13 students to help them relaunch this initiative. A shared passion for innovation and design-orientated problem-solving is what the three students use to create solutions that are sustainable and socially responsible.
value of empathy when designing for other people is what we feel is key to successful innovation. Club members are highly encouraged to experiment and learn new skills, ranging from technical skills such as CAD/ CAM to collaboration skills. The Design Council is open to Secondary students of all Year groups and runs all year. However, if you are a Senior student and wish to become involved for CAS hours, please contact Mr Smith (Head of D+T Faculty)
Taken from the Bangkok Patana School’s Vision Statement “We develop global citizens who shape their world The Design Council is now in its fourth year having ac- through independence, empathy, creativity, and critical thinking”, we use this as our inspiration and guiding statecomplished various tasks: ment as we work towards meeting the needs of people • Outdoor classroom renovation with bird and bat through our projects. This is a wonderful opportunity for all boxes students in the Secondary School to flourish and exploit their curiosity, imagination, and problem-solving skills. • Hosting Junior Friendly Design Competition During CSL, while the access to the D+T faculty is limited, • Visiting Baan Nonthaphum home for disabled chil- the Design Council will provide opportunities for students dren to donate products to explore their passion and interest in design through difThe Design Council hopes to raise awareness of ferent tasks. We plan to support students in: the importance of solving problems through design • Tackling design-based problems that they are interamongst Patana students. The importance of sustainested in using CAD software and making prototypes able considerations when designing and the true
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Jiwon Yoo, 13D Nichapatr Petch Lomtakul, 13G Pongpanod (Gere) Worarittichai, 13E with home equipment such as boxes, tapes, legos, valuable contributions to our school and local community. etc. If you are interested, please do not hesitate to contact Mr. Smith (Head of Department D+T) (rism@patana.ac.th) or • Analysing existing design solutions to research and Jiwon Yoo on Teams. learn more about innovative products around the world If you would like to stay updated on our various projects, or want to submit a project request, visit our website here. • Free design related tasks that they want to work on Students, parents, teachers can send through project reKS3 students are also encouraged to enter the FOBISIA quests and enquiries regarding potential design projects Sustainability / STG’s - Pop Up Book Challenge in this around the school. We cannot promise to answer all requests with a physical outcome, but we will certainly conclub. sider everything. This year, The Design Council ECA is open to students Thank you for taking the time to read our article and your from Years 7-10 on Monday from 2.30 to 3.30 pm (there interest in The Design Council. may be a limit to student numbers). We invite all Secondary students who enjoy designing and wish to develop their skills beyond their D+T lessons. We will be making
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CAT/CAS Corner Tiger Shop Reflections M
y experience with the Tiger Shop has been one of the most significant activities I’ve done this year. Through CAS at the Tiger Shop, I’ve been offered the creative freedom to explore and delve deep into product ideas, form new marketing tactics and further develop my communication skills. Furthermore, coming up with new product ideas and forming social media campaigns has helped me grow stronger as a student by applying various skills from subjects like business to the real world which is definitely a valuable skill to obtain so I’m really grateful to have been able to do this through an enjoyable activity. Natanisha (Candy) Nalinthrangkurn, 13T
Being a part of the Tiger Shop has been an amazing opportunity for me. I learned so much from identifying student’s needs, target group and personal interests. Even though the whole experience was only a few months long, it was a memorable one. I also developed new creative skills and use it in real life. Being able to experience what running a real business actually feels like has also helped me grow as a person. I would highly recommend this activity to anyone who’s committed, passionate and willing to learn new skills! Melody Chan, 13M
In the Spotlight... George Institute of Technology, USA R
anked 12th for engineering and technology in the Times Higher Education global rankings, Georgia Institute of Technology, or Georgia Tech, is also one of the top public universities in the US and produces more women engineers than any other institution in the US. There are more than 21,500 students, of which 27 percent are international. Georgia Tech offers degrees through the colleges of Design, Computing, Engineering, Sciences, the Scheller College of Business and the Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts. It is well-known for its Invention Studio, a 3,000 square-foot, student-run collaborative space for students. Famous alumni include former US Presidentand Nobel Peace Prize winner Jimmy Carter, comedian Jeff Foxworthy, the inventor of Segway, multiple US astronauts and a winner of the Nobel prize in Chemistry.
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Year 13 Only
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STUDENTS SPEAK Lucy: The Key to our Past Kamolnisa (Gao) Kamalanavin, 12L ucy walked on this very planet 3.2 million years ago in the savannahs of Hadar, Ethiopia. She held the key to unlocking our past: the progression of hominid evolution and the factors which triggered our ancestors to change from tree-living to ground-dwelling apes. The ever-changing environment caused her species to evolve constantly for adaptation, which soon led to the creation of us, Homo sapiens. Here is the story of an early human, which contributed to unraveling the enigmas of our past.
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Lucy was a species in the Hominid group known as Australopithecus afarensis, Latin for the ‘southern Ape of Afar’. She was only 20 years old when she died, estimated by the extremity of her tooth decay. In total, 47 fragments of bones were found, which was 40 percent of what it would have been of a complete skeleton. This ape was a female, considering the broader hips that are distinct from them, and she stood only 1.10 meters tall with a weight of 29 kilograms. With a glimpse, Lucy’s physical appearance is more similar to Chimpanzees than modern THE DISCOVERY OF LUCY humans, shown in Figure.2. Yet, we have a significant simiIn 1974, two admirable paleoanthropologists, Donal Jo- larity that will become clearer when we take a closer look hanson and Tom Gray went on an expedition in Ethiopia at their physiology. to obtain evidence for a deeper route of ape origin in Africa. On a Sunday morning, whilst scavenging around PHYSIOLOGY the area, Johanson stumbled upon pieces of an elbow Aside from her height, Lucy is very similar to humans in bone, a jaw, then a skull (shown in Figure.1) which they the sense that her physiology is structured to have an uppresumed belonged to a human ancestor. These bones right gait like ours. This means that her hips and knees are were found at a site around 3 million years old, which molded to walk upright to accommodate changes in the meant that the fossil he uncovered was the most ancient natural environment: the decrease in forest biomes that hominid ever seen in their time. lead to savannahs’ growth. However, Christ Stringer of the Natural History Museum in London begs to differ. He WHO WAS LUCY? suggests that they moved to the ground due to the search for a wider variety in their diet, which allowed them to become more flexible when traveling around. Essentially, this new locomotion would be known as bipedalism, the action of two rear limbs to move. Lucy and another related species, known as Australopithecus africanus, were the first generation to adopt this new moving method. Bipedalism allows these apes to walk longer distances, encouraging them to explore more areas in their environment. Read more about Lucy on Scientia here.
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The Toppling Effect of the Taliban’s Takeover Kirsten Winyard, 12E, World Food Project
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ith the Taliban’s recent reacquisition of almost every province in Afghanistan, its people are struggling more than ever before. Previous stresses of drought and COVID-19 only exacerbate the circumstances, depriving the country of not only a competent workforce but also their leading industry: agriculture. The United Nations has decreed that one in every three people are suffering from severe food insecurity and malnourishment - this translates to over 14 million people starving, two million of which are children. Hundreds of thousands of families have been internally displaced, fleeing their homes in search of food and sanctuary. In an interview the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Afghanistan, Ramiz Alakbarov, stated that 50 percent of all Afghan children already faced acute malnutrition, coinciding with statistics that show Afghanistan having high child mortality rates at approximately 60 per 1000 live births. In the last three months, WFP has provided aid to upwards of four million people in recent months. However, the tragedies ravaging Afghanistan are far from over and it is imperative to utilize the resources available to us to help when and where we can. We strongly urge you to join us in donating directly to WFP using the link here. Photos courtesy of VOA and Bergen Project
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Desert Island Discs With Luke Jones, Secondary Assistant Principal
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his column follows in the style of the famed BBC podcast which features a celebrity every week – here we feature our own Bangkok Patana celebrities! What eight songs, one luxury item and one book would you take with you if you were stuck on a desert island? Today our new Secondary Assistant Principal Luke Jones is stuck on a desert island. MR JONES IF YOU WERE STUCK ON A DESERT ISLAND WHAT EIGHT PIECES OF MUSIC WOULD YOU WANT TO HAVE WITH YOU? Round Here – Counting Crows
Thunder Road – Bruce Springsteen
There is a Light That Never Goes Out – The Smiths
Winter – Tori Amos
Sometimes – James
Idiot Wind – Bob Dylan
Wessex Boy – Frank Turner
Nightswimming – R.E.M. Click to listen to Mr Jones’ playlist
PICK ONE LUXURY ITEM YOU WOULD WANT TO HAVE WITH YOU. THIS ITEM MUST BE INANIMATE AND OF NO USE IN ESCAPING THE ISLAND OR ALLOWING COMMUNICATION FROM OUTSIDE. 1935 Martin D-18 Acoustic Guitar WHICH ONE BOOK WOULD YOU WANT TO HAVE WITH YOU? The Beach by Alex Garland Catch the real Desert Island Discs on BBC. Now that you are stuck at home, what are you listening to? Have a list of your own? Let us know! Contact SHKN with your favourites.
HAVE YOU BOOKMARKED THE SCHOOL CALENDAR YET? 2021/22 CALENDAR
RSVP Here 12
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#192: Reduce Computer Related Eyestrain W
ith the increased time spent in front of our screens and in particular sitting down more during the day, I thought it timely to post these two videos about getting your set-up at home and work as ergonomic and healthy as possible. Watch them with your family and see if you can adjust your environment to improve your health and well-being.
Have a healthy weekend. Brian Taylor Assistant Principal, Campus Curriculum Technology Integration
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Meeting Bangkok’s Chinatown for the First Time
Kees Meinders, Primary Dutch Teacher ven though we are in lockdown, there are still nice things to do and explore in Bangkok as I found out recently. Since I am new to Bangkok and to Thailand, I enjoyed a wonderful bicycling tour with Co van Kessel. With their unique yellow bikes, I went for a great tour through the small streets of Bangkok’s Chinatown. It was amazing to see how our tour guide knew all these little shortcuts. He told us that even though he was from the neighbourhood it still took him almost a year of practicing to give this tour. If it was too crowded at some point, he just took another route. We saw a lot of Chinatown, visited a temple and went on a ferry on the river.
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Since I am Dutch, you might know that Dutch people and bikes are a good combo so, for me, it was great fun. For all the people who didn’t grow up riding bikes, however, I can state that the bikes are in good condition and easy to handle. So, don’t let it hold you back. Also, the tour was almost entirely in narrow streets without car traffic, so it's also a safe tour to take with your children. Most remarkable was that we made little stops for drinking water. But not at 7-eleven. Instead, local people just grabbed some water out of their fridge and served us. They were paid a fair price by our tour guide. I like that they give something back to the local community.
Join the Japanese PTG
【ジャパニーズグループに参加しませんか】
バンコクパタナスクールのジャパニーズグループは、日本人の父親あ るいは母親を持つ生徒の保護者により運営されているグループです。 現在、約70家族が加入しており、毎年行われるインターナショナルデー などの学校活動に協力しています。 また、情報交換の場として親睦会を 年に数回行っています。 参加ご希望の方は、小野 武英 もしくは、吉田 慶 太 までご連絡ください。 patanajapaneseg@gmail.com
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here are around 70 Japanese families who are members of this group, and we support International Day and other school activities. If you are a Japanese speaker or married to a Japanese speaker, then we would like to invite you to join our group. Please contact to Mr.Takehide Ono or Mr.Keita Yoshida, Email: patanajapaneseg@gmail.com
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Pilates at Patana Karen Dawber, Patana Parent
est The lat e from th
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ome join fellow Patana parent Karen Dawber for virtual PTG Pilates classes. She is a certified STOTT Pilates instructor and will run an all level class to stretch and strengthen us. No prior experience of Pilates required; everyone is welcome to join! The class will be on Zoom for 1 hour and will leave us energized and ready for the rest of our day! Please join the Pilates Line group for Zoom link details and to ask any questions you may have.
to me. In 2016, whilst living in Tokyo, I took the opportunity to train and become a Certified STOTT Pilates Instructor. I have since additionally trained on the Pilates Reformer equipment.
Through controlled exercises, Pilates develops a strong core, strong lean muscles, flexibility, quietens the nervous system and promotes good health. For those active in other sports, Pilates can be key in maintaining balance within the body and thus pre“Hi my name is venting injuries. Karen and it is my I am a huge advocate of movement; our modern privilege to lead the Pilates classes for lives deprive us of so many innate opportunities to parents at Patana. I move that our bodies often become tired, stiff and have lived in Bang- achy but by taking the opportunity to move mindfulkok for just over two ly we can greatly benefit our bodies and our overyears, with my hus- all well-being. This is why I am passionate about band John and our sharing Pilates with the other Parents at Patana; it is two children Brad- also a great way to meet new people. ley (Year 6) and Amelie (Year 4) since last August. The classes at Patana are all level mat based PiI originally discovered Pilates in my home country lates classes. Everyone is welcome, no matter your of the UK. After Bradley was born I experienced age or gender. Oh, and flexibility is not required! terrible back pain; a physiotherapist got me on the Indeed if you are not flexible, Pilates is perfect for road to recovery but then she told me I should start you as we develop flexibility and mobility! Here Pilates to continue to strengthen and heal my back. are just a few comments from those who have atDuring my second pregnancy I had no back issues tended the classes.”: and just one class a week made a huge difference
Click here to join the PTG Facebook Group
03/09/2021
“When I first joined, it was my first Pilates class “Karen is a great instructor and an absolute professional. I always look forward to our Friday in a very long time! Karen immediately made me Pilates sessions. They are a wonderful way to start feel at ease with her warm personality and easy the day, and to kick off the weekend.” Ashmeet to follow exercises! I just love my Friday mornings! I come home feeling energized and hap“As an absolute beginner in Pilates, I have py! I can already see and feel the difference the found Karen's classes to be extremely welcom- class is making!” Kelly ing, enjoyable and challenging. Karen is a very knowledgeable, fun and encouraging instructor “I really enjoy making a strong start to the who is capable of working with many different weekend, by joining the pilates class every Friskill levels. I have enjoyed her classes immense- day. Karen is an experienced instructor who ly and would recommend to anyone looking to delivers her session at a steady pace, giving us strengthen their core and ward off unnecessary exercises that can be adapted to our individual strength and abilities. I look forward to the class sports' injuries” Thita every week and come away feeling energised and stronger with increased flexibility. It’s a great class!” Racheal
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More e from th
P T G Click here to join the PTG Facebook Group
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Bicarb
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Wildlife Spotting with Coke Timing is Everything
Alexander Coke Smith IV, Environmental Systems and Societies Leader
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am often asked why I visit the same locations on a regular basis. One reason is that you can never predict what you might find – there is always that one chance of seeing that exceedingly rare species that you can never predict or target. But seasonal changes are perhaps my main reason for visiting the same location over and over again. These days, the seasons are changing! With this in mind, this week I would like to highlight three local wildlife hotspots that are experiencing a seasonal shift that are exhibiting signs of changing times. Lat Krabang and the Thap Yao Rice Fields (13.744147, 100.804325) are in a location I have mentioned before in a previous column. This is a very popular birding hotspot that is a great place with the potential of seeing over 150 species. Right now, there is one species in particular that may be worth the effort to view, however the window of opportunity may be short-lived. The spectacular Red Avadavat (Amandava amandava), also known as the Strawberry Finch, is a lovely bird that for much of the year is a brownish little bird that is easily overlooked. But this time of year, the males of these tiny birds will
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change to the most spectacular deep red to attract their mates. Birders from all over Thailand come to Lat Krabang to try to see and even photograph this beautiful species. Last weekend the Smith family ventured out and was fortunate to see hundreds of them finishing the last of this season’s rice kernels. The best time to see them is late afternoon near rice grasses that are laden with ripe kernels of rice. Be sure to bring binoculars - they are easy to miss! Another awesome spot in the greater Bangkok area is the Pathum Thani Rice Research Center (14.010935, 100.727295). I have highlighted this great hotspot earlier as well but now we are seeing the signs of the winter migration starting in full force! Species like the Pintail Snipes have made their way to the Chao Praya river valley all the way from their summer grounds deep in Siberia. Many waders and shorebirds are starting to populate the local wetlands. I will highlight these amazing wildlife spectacles later in the school year. Wat Suan Yai in Nonthaburi (13.806031, 100.482577) is an awesome place to view two of Thailand’s more spectacular species – the Alexandrine and Red-breasted Parakeets. Many wats in Thailand have ancient Dipterocarp trees that used to cover vast areas of the Chao Praya river basin. These rainforest giants are the favourite nesting spots for many species of birds, especially these two species of parakeets. With 99 percent of the ancient trees cut down, the locations where they exist are the only places you will be able to see the species that depend on them. Consequently, these species are now critically endangered in Thailand. The area around Wat Suan Yai is perhaps the only reliable place remaining in Thailand to see the Alexandrine Parakeet. Please feel free to contact Coke Smith (cosm@patana.ac.th) if you would like specific tips of when and how to see the species in this article.
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COMMUNITY
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COMMUNITY
Thursday 23 September at 4pm
Free of charge Members register here Non-members can view on Facebook here or YouTube here A talk on the events that took place in Siam during the total solar eclipse of 6 April 1875 and the reports from observers at the time. This is a free online lecture, members of the Siam Society may join in the live Q&A via Zoom, others may watch the live transmission from YouTube and Facebook.
Register for this Zoom talk from the Siam Society here.
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For daily updates, snapshots and news on life at school you can find us here...
643 Lasalle Road (Sukhumvit 105) Bangna Tai, Bangna, Bangkok 10260 THAILAND Tel: +66 (0) 2785 2200 Fax: +66 (0) 2785 2399 www.patana.ac.th Email: reception@patana.ac.th 22
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