Beyond Recycling set to grow
Available in five more communities this season. . . teachers stay tuned
And then there were eight . . .
Beyond Recycling is the first program in Wildsight’s Education for Sustainable Living series. It has helped students in Fernie, Invermere and Sparwood learn about waste and resource issues.
And now, thanks to support from the Regional District of Central Kootenay (RDCK) and Environment Canada, Wildsight will be able to deliver Beyond Recycling to classes in five more communities. This is great news for intermediate students in Kootenay schools.
“Five schools in the central Kootenay district, and three schools in the East Kootenay district are what we’re aiming for,” said Monica Nissen. Nissen manages Wildsight’s regional education programs. “That means more than one hundred Grade 5, 6 and 7 kids will be learning firsthand how they can contribute to a more sustainable future.”
Bringing lessons from the great outdoors into the classroom
Nissen can be found most spring days showing young people around the amazing ecosystems of the Columbia Basin. She said Wildsight has great success with its outdoor Education in the Wild programs—and that Beyond Recycling is a natural extension of them.
“Education in the Wild focuses on getting kids outside to connect with nature,” Nissen said. “They learn about how natural systems work. Beyond Recycling is a year-long, classroom curriculum—with some field trips—that gives them tools for action. It’s like Beyond Recycling helps answer some questions that come up during Education in the Wild.”
Nissen said Beyond Recycling increases the “action component”: students learn practical ways to minimize their environmental impacts.
“Beyond Recycling takes lessons from nature, and shows us how to apply them to our own lives,” she said. “In nature, there is no such thing as waste. As we learn to operate more like nature operates, we can come closer to being a zero-waste society.”
Which schools will get Beyond Recycling in 2009-2010?
It’s early yet to know where Beyond Recycling will touch down for the season.
“We’ll start with schools we think are interested,” Nissen said. “Having the support to deliver Beyond Recycling to eight communities is great, but it’s still going to be a limited delivery.”
Nissen said the once-a-week, hour-long curriculum can be delivered to Grades 5, 6 and 7. “It’s a great opportunity for teachers—they get a facilitator to teach their classes for that time, with hands-on, engaging lessons, skits, field trips. Students respond very positively to Beyond Recycling.”
For more information, please e-mail.
