Education in the Wild

Beyond
Recycling students ‘tuned out’ at Earth Hour, working all month on
Eco-Challenge

Beyond Recycling students in nine classes at eight schools in
the Kootenays are participating in a one-month Eco-Challenge to reduce their
energy use and lower their impact on the Earth. ... Read more »

More kids than ever learning the ecology of ‘cool.’ ... Read more »

'There’s no such thing as bad weather, just inappropriate clothing.' --Sanne van der Ros  ... Read more »

by Nelson Daily Staff

Tumbling down snow banks is nothing new for kids, but learning about
the science of snow puts a whole new spin on it for them in Winter
Wonder.

Elementary school students will be
taking ecology classes in the snow during Wildsight’s Winter Wonder
trips in Nelson this month. ... Read more »

Students in Mrs. Pitcher’s Grade 1 class spent last Friday morning
playing in the snow and learning about winter ecology. Winter
Wonderland, a Wildsight Education in the Wild program, is a program for
Grade 1 to 3 students. It is designed to teach kids about how outdoor
life works in these cold, Canadian winters. ... Read more »

Ecological field trips available this September and October; both spring and fall programs are now free of charge

One of Wildsight’s environmental education programs is offering a fall series for the first time this September. Classroom with Outdoors is now available to classes who want to enjoy the fall weather while they learn about grasslands, wetlands and forest ecosystems. ... Read more »

Columbia Basin Trust and Wildsight celebrate 10 Years of Education in the Wild

Columbia Basin, B.C. ... Read more »

A recycling education program got the vote of approval from not only its students, but judges in a community champions award. ... Read more »

But—will Beyond Recycling go beyond this year? ... Read more »

Biggest year ever for classes, warmest year for weather

By Carolyn Grant
Kimberley Daily Bulletin
July 20, 2009

As Bulletin readers will recall from a few weeks ago, Selkirk Grade 9 students enjoyed a wonderful adventure in Akamina Kishenena Provincial Park, thanks to Wildsight's Go Wild program.

This August another Go Wild summer backpacking adventure is being offered, and it is available to all Columbia Basin youth ages 14 to 19.

Program coordinator and adventure guide Liz Hardwick says that the week long adventure - this trip will take youth into the Purcell backcountry - is a way for youth to find camaraderie, adventure and confidence.

"The Go Wild Summer Adventure is a week-long, guided backpacking expedition into the Purcell Mountains," said Hardwick. "It gives young people a chance to connect with wild places during a life-changing journey. And it inspires the next generation of environmental leaders."

"No previous camping experience is required," Hardwick said, "just enthusiasm and a willingness to learn."

The six-day hike is scheduled for August 23 to 28 at a cost of $350. Costs include food, and all camping equipment is supplied by Wildsight. (Participants supply their own outdoor-appropriate clothing.) Help is available to meet costs. Wildsight does have some subsidies available for students who wish to take part but can't afford it.

Wildsight is able to offer this kind of help because of continued support from organizations like Columbia Basin Trust.

"We are proud to support the Go Wild Summer Adventure trips," said Dana Welsh, Columbia Basin Trust Youth Liaison. "Not only will it allow youth to connect with the outdoors, but the skills they will be learning in how to work together on challenges or how to support one another during the week, those will enable them to grow and will help them learn how to become better stewards of not only the environment, but of each other and the people they may work with in the future."

Hardwick says a week in the backcountry away from the world of iPods and Facebook is an intense experience for young people and they learn a lot about themselves.

"They gain confidence in their abilities, learn to function as part of a team, and get to know the mountains. They develop a sense of responsibility for the place they live in," she said.

More information about the Go Wild program is available at www.wildsight.ca/summeradventure or by calling (250) 427-9325.

By Tom Martin
Kimberley Daily Bulletin
July 9, 2009

June 25, Day Four.

I awoke in reverie. I felt honoured and blessed to be dry and listening to the songs of the forest. I must be up early because the camp is quiet, so I bask in the glow and thrum that only high altitude, wilderness, and fresh air can bring. Yesterday's successful bid to the summit of Mt. Rowe reverberated in my soul and I felt like pinching myself to make sure I wasn't dreaming. But if I had been dreaming, my daze would have been shattered as a wild man suddenly began to wreak havoc in the campground.

I had forgotten that 19-year-old co-leader Dan Moe was on wake-up duty that morning, and by the time he was finished with his shattering banshee bellowing beside each of the tents, I knew I was awake and camping with the 2009 Go Wild expedition from Selkirk Secondary School.

One might expect that after the thrilling climb to the top of Mt. Rowe everything would be anti-climactic, but one would be wrong. Day four was to bring more stunning beauty and a growing sense of self-confidence and at-oneness that we all had achieved through three days in the remote, rugged wilderness of Akamina-Kishinena Provincial Park.

We broke camp and honoured our custodial agreement with BC Parks, leaving the campground spotless with toilet cleaned, fire wood stacked and ready, and not a scrap of garbage anywhere (students packed out garbage left by previous, less meticulous campers).

With some serious packing and climbing already under our belts, and with packs lightened by our rapidly disappearing food stores, the 3km trail to Wall Lake was, well, a walk in the park.

Like the vistas that overwhelmed them on the summit of Mt. Rowe, few were prepared for the ecstatic beauty of Wall Lake. The only one in the group not to comment on the intangible glory of Wall, still with ice covering the far end, was my golden retriever Indy, who did not hesitate to go for a nice long swim in the chilly waters.  As they did on the peak of Rowe, the leaders separated the students for some quiet, solo reflection. I found these moments of the trip very powerful - not just for myself, but in the wisdom of un-plugging our youngsters from the social realm to reflect on just how beautiful life is and how nature, if we let her, will sing to us.

We walked to a lovely lagoon on the southwest side of the lake where Leader Liz, a Wildsight employee from Nelson, had prepared an amazing lesson for the students. There, beneath the oldest rocks in the Rockies (1.3 billion years old), pushed skyward by unfathomable tectonic forces, we held a mock United Nations summit on the future of the Flathead Valley.

I want to take a moment here to recognize the tremendous contribution of Wildsight, our ubiquitous Kootenay environmental group. Not only was Wildsight subsidizing each camper's trip ($100 per camper and use of the Kimberley Car Share truck), they were also providing the teaching services allowing yours truly to say nothing for a change and take it all in. In the lesson, I was Mr. Moon, a Korean UN bigwig being asked to judge on an important environmental debate!

Our mock summit paralleled an actual summit that the UN was holding at the same time, with representatives from Wildsight, other environmental groups, residents, British Petroleum, other mining interests, and various other experts and dignitaries from around the world. The topic: Is the integrity of Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park, a world ecological heritage site, threatened by economic development in the Flathead? Though the kids would likely have been just as happy to sit and bask in the sun below the towering lithic wall from which the lake gets its name, they gamefully participated in the exercise, each role-playing the various stakeholders' positions on the issue.

I congratulate Liz on such a creative and balanced lesson.

The skinny on the UN question about the Flathead in my humble and learned Korean position? Yes, the area is threatened by resource extraction developments like coal-bed methane. At a time when the world is turning away from fossil fuels for a number of good reasons we should stand up and raise our voice to keep this area pristine. The Waterton-Glacier/Flathead area has the largest diversity of wildlife (bears, cougars, wolverines, wolf, coyote, elk, moose, deer, sheep, goats and countless birds, rodents, reptiles, plants, etc.) anywhere in North America. It seems absurd that anyone would argue in favour of destroying or even altering the delicate balance which sustains this diversity for the sake of some unsustainable fuels and corporate profits.

When we left Wall Lake and walked down the Akamina Valley, I overheard a group of girls singing the 80's pop tune "Walking on Sunshine." And indeed we were. The valley was teeming with life, a verdant explosion of solar energy and chlorophyll. Birds and bugs sang and flew in all directions. Flowers were popping open by the minute (although about two weeks would be needed for the peak blossom event). And along the trail: plenty of evidence, including large footprints of bears, that we were sharing this valley with some of the noblest and most majestic creatures in creation.

We pitched our tents beneath the infinite of the crystal clear heavens. The moon and the stars imparted their final blessings on us, beckoning us not to forget the sense of wonder and awe that had crept into our hearts and souls. Around an LNT (leave no trace) fire the kids shared so openly and profoundly about their experiences that I was deeply moved. I've taught a lot of lessons over the past few decades but little I've ever said or done has had the kind of immediate impact that I could see this trip had made on these kids.

We would all sleep soundly that night, our bodies now accustomed to this wonderful new lifestyle of fresh air, vigourous exercise, and a thin mat for a bed. Coyotes were yipping in the forest just above us. I put Indy on a chain and lay outside my tent looking at the stars for a long time before climbing inside for the last sleep of a great trip.

Tomorrow: Reflections on outdoor education, blessings, and hope.