Providing teachers and students with access to leading edge resources for environmental education.

Developing the environmental literacy of Canadians plays a significant role in forming a culture where sustainable practices are pursued. Youth environmental programs contribute to building their awareness, understanding and commitment to sustainable practices. As such, environmental education programs can provide a solid foundation for youth to become leaders in contributing to a world in which our immediate and future needs are met in a manner that protects the earth's living systems; ensures clean air, land and water; prevents dangerous climate change, and provides for a safe and just global community.

Through the Youth Environmental Education Program, the Pembina Foundation provides support for the development of effective youth education programs that build environmental literacy through both formal and informal education efforts. The foundation engages in education programs that support teachers and youth leaders — and inspire youth both inside and outside school settings — to engage themselves and their communities in energy conservation, renewable energy development, clean air and climate change initiatives.

Program Highlights

 

Green Learning^TM is a national framework for education on energy and environment issues. The Green Learning program seeks to empower youth with knowledge, tools and appreciation for the challenges and opportunities we face with respect to energy and the environment.

The program uses educational approaches that emphasize hands-on, investigational, out-of-classroom and student-directed programs — the hallmarks of effective environmental education programs.

Green Learning supports youth environmental literacy by enabling students to:

1. Develop environmental literacy through awareness raising and knowledge-rich, innovative and challenging activities-based programs.
2. Gain skills to enact positive, practical and personal action on energy and environment issues through supportive development of reflective and critical thinking abilities.
3. Engage their schools and communities in increased energy conservation and efficiency, sustainable energy choices, pollution and greenhouse gas emissions reduction activities.

The Green Learning education team has created content for delivery in Alberta, British Columbia and Ontario. However, the Green Learning program is nationally focused; there are plans to provide resources for all provinces and territories.

Greenlearning.ca

Greenlearning.ca is a web-based resource that delivers timely, accurate and engaging environmental learning resources, tips and support to teachers and students learning about energy and the environment. Greenlearning.ca helps students learn about topics ranging from renewable energy and energy efficiency to conventional energy and climate change.

Lessons plans, classroom activities (both online and offline) and additional resources tied to Alberta, British Columbia and Ontario curriculum units are available.

Thanks to the commitment of Greenlearning.ca sponsors, resources are currently available at no charge to students and teachers across Alberta, Ontario and British Columbia. In addition, substantial portions of the Greenlearning.ca site are available free to the general public, community organizations, industry and government employees.

» Visit www.greenlearning.ca!

EnerAction

An Integrated Grade 4 to 7 Green Learning^TM Energy and Environment Education Program

"Learning through play, following a story with creative characters and inviting kids to think critically about their own energy use will help make these tough societal issues easier to understand. EnerAction empowers kids to take action on their own ideas." Nadine Raynolds, Greenlearning Education Team
A heightened awareness of global warming has parents and educators searching for ways to teach children about environmental challenges, without scaring them. EnerAction is a fun, interactive and positive online education program that helps kids learn about energy use and greenhouse gas emissions that result from different actions. With the help of Sparky, Electra and the Carbon Critters — featured characters in EnerAction — kids find ways of reducing energy use and shrinking the critters' energy footprint.

EnerAction supports students and teachers in gaining:

• an awareness of where their energy comes from
• the knowledge of how their energy choices affect the health and well-being of their communities and planet earth
• a sense of empowerment to take action to affect change for themselves and others!

EnerAction is designed as a curriculum-integrated education program for intermediate (Grade 4 to 7) curriculum in British Columbia and Ontario. It provides resources to meet learning objectives for Social Studies, Language Arts, Science and Mathematics. EnerAction is a pilot learning unit developed by the Greenlearning education team.

For more information on the Green Learning^TM program, contact

Gordon Harrison
Director, Green Learning
The Pembina Institute
Email: gordonh(at)pembina.org
Tel: 613-256-1487