9^th World Environmental Education Congress (WEEC)

In September 2017, the Institute for Environmental Learning organized and hosted the 9th World Environmental Education Congress with the theme Culture /Environment: Weaving New Connections.  The theme was specifically designed to showcase Canadian and British Columbian Heritage and Culture by highlighting the unique First Nations Cultures present on the West Coast and their relationship to environmental and sustainability practices and worldviews.  The theme also highlighted the unique cultural mosaic of Canadian society against a backdrop of Canadian leadership in the Environmental milieu in tandem with the development of contemporary ‘green’ buildings and sustainable community development. It also celebrated the birth of the environmental movement as a Tblisi +40 event with patronage from UNESCO and UN Environment.  The 5 day event also showcased Canada’s leadership role in the field using a range of Canadian talent in its Plenary Sessions which featured BC and Canadian content. Plenary sessions involved speakers such as Guujaaw, the former leader of the Council of the Haida Nation, as well as popular media personalities such as David Suzuki, and also prominent scholars such as Nancy Turner (Order of Canada recipient) and Jeanette Armstrong (celebrated Okanagan author and poet).

Link to WEEC 2017 website**

Co-Design Youth Manual

The latest edition Youth Manual for Sustainable Design was made possible by support from the Vancouver Foundation, the Real Estate Foundation of BC with support from the Institute for Environmental Learning. The manual highlights approaches used working with youth when planning the future of their learning environments and communities  can bring tangible benefits. When made aware of the environment beyond their home, youth can bring fresh eyes into the dialogue as part of the Co-design process. Their active lives enlarge the range of activities in the design. Through the co-design process, young people have contributed to the design of many parks, provincial and national parks, city neighbourhoods and small towns throughout British Columbia.  When young people are included in planning, the designs show consistent characteristics; a humanity of scale, and a large range of activities that can be enjoyed in the new place. The involvement of youth in planning also encourages civil behaviour and strengthens the community.

Co-Design Youth Manual

https://youthmanual.blogspot.com/p/youth-manual.html 

Sustainable Urban Neighbourhood Networks (SUNN)

This project was funded by the Real Estate Foundation of BC and involved development of a creative community engagement process that borrowed from the tradition of the architectural ‘design charette’ while also retaining features of ‘community mapping’ common in environmental education practice.  A series of  urban design charrettes were used to explore ways to meet population targets identified in Metro Vancouver’s regional growth strategy by applying the principles of human-scaled urbanism at the scale of the neighbourhood centre, or “quartier”.  The charrette and its analysis was part of the Institute’s Sustainable Urban Neighbourhood Network (SUNN) project, an initiative to research and develop a more open, inclusive, and cost-effective neighbourhood planning protocol. Focused on long-term sustainability through growth, the charrette demonstrated and tested a streamlined sustainable community planning process in Vancouver’s Historic Area.

Sustainable Urban Neighbourhood Network (SUNN)

https://sunnvancouver.wordpress.com 

Ecological Education Project

The ecological education project was funded by NSERC (CRYSTAL) and addressed the question: “How can ecological literacy become a core educational standard in our schools?” Here many aspects of the BC Provincial Framework for Environmental Learning were implemented in a series of case studies. The process culminated in the implemention of the Seaquarium program and associated marine education activities at the Bowen Island Community school and Pacific Heights Elementary School (Surrey).  The project was evaluated using the PLACES learning environment instrument and a qualitative protocol of observations and focus groups.

Ecological Education

https://www.sfu.ca/education/research/research-projects/eco-literacy-bowen-island.html

Environmental Learning and Experience

The primary objectives of this SSHRC and Vancouver Foundation-funded program was to disseminate, deepen and expand the current research on environmental learning and education for sustainable development (ESD) to K-12 teachers, and to seek greater engagement from community stakeholders (parent groups, business and community organizations, NGOs, First Nations, federal, provincial and municipal governments).  While there is a growing interest in environmental learning and sustainability among educators, and recent reforms in British Columbia curricula have responded to this increasing awareness and demand. In 2007, a the provincial framework for K-12 environmental education – Environmental Learning and Experience (ELE) – was spearheaded by project lead, David Zandvliet, and SFU, along with broad representation form the Institute for Environmental Learning including members from the Environmental Educators Provincial Specialists’ Association (EEPSA) of the BCTF.

Environmental Learning and Experience

https://www.sfu.ca/education/research/research-projects/environmental-learning-experience.html