Two Interboro School District teachers started an innovative and fun project last fall to teach inquisitive students about food production and sustainability, writes Kathy Boccella for the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Not even a year later, 1,500 tilapia are teeming in tanks and large plastic tubs that have taken over two classrooms, while gravel-filled container lids are packed with oregano, tomatoes, hot peppers, and greens.

According to tech-ed teachers Joe Fisher and Tom Speer, this is the first large-scale, high-school-based program in aquaponics in the Philadelphia region. The goal is to grow plants and fish using the nutrient rich water from the fish tanks to feed the vegetables.

“The best thing we can teach students is how to sustain life,” said Fisher, who grew up in the school district and is an avid deep-sea fisherman.

So far, the project has cost $9,000. However, for the two educators, this is only the beginning. The pair recently applied for a state farm grant of $100,000, which would be put toward large greenhouses with viewing windows and solar panels. The appeal is clear, as more than 80 students have already signed up for the program next year.

Speer and Fisher are hoping to at least double the program over time to nurture the students’ intellectual curiosity and help the local needy and elderly, who receive packages of fish fillets and produce.

Read more about the project in the Philadelphia Inquirer by clicking here.

Top photo credit: Tilapia – Aquaponics via photopin (license)