Schools from Hannam Vale to Kempsey have supported the educational and creative arts project, Koala Smart.

The results of their efforts will go on display at Port Macquarie, Wauchope and Kempsey.

The project raises awareness of the dramatic decline in local koala populations.

The Tacking Point Lions Club teamed up with the Port Macquarie Koala Hospital, Koala Recovery Partnership and Hello Koalas to involve schools across the Hastings and Macleay region and spread the word.

Some 25 schools took up the challenge and worked on their ideas and solutions for most of the school year.

Professionals in koala health and conservation, as well as general and environmental education have been busily evaluating all the entries.

Members of the Tacking Point Lions, along with Port Macquarie and Wauchope Lions clubs, are working towards showing the results to the general public.

Community members will be able to view a display at Settlement City after a launch of the school displays at Panthers Port Macquarie.

The Settlement City display runs from October 25 to October 27.

The display will then move to the CWA Hall at Wauchope until October 31.

A smaller showcase will follow at the Kempsey Shire Council building until November 8.

The students have presented their concerns and ideas about the decline in koala populations in a variety of forms including interactive picture books, videos and paintings.

The Lions club has also provided each school with a small koala sculpture to paint.

All 25 of these koala sculptures will also be on show.

Port Macquarie Koala Hospital clinical director Cheyne Flanagan is delighted with the results.

"Some of the ideas appearing have been outstanding," she said.

"It is obvious that children of all ages put real importance on the future of the environment and on the future of our amazing koalas."

The sculptures will be returned to their home schools after the public displays.

Two schools will each win a full-size Hello Koalas sculpture.

Janice McGilchrist and Rob Bruce are co-chairs of the Koala Smart project.

Mrs McGilchrist said the next step in this ambitious Lions project would be to further explore some of the students' ideas to find out which could be applied in the real world.

"And that is where all of us can pitch in and help," she said.

Mr Bruce said the initial value was on community awareness and the endgame was to come up with real on the ground solutions to be put in place by schools, Lions and the community.

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