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NWP Global Registry of Apprentice Ecologists - Kingston, Ontario, Canada

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Kingston, Ontario, Canada
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kday113



Registered: November 2013
City/Town/Province: Kingston
Posts: 1
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Edward Everett Hale once said: “I am only one but I am one. I cannot do everything but I can do something. And I will not let what I cannot do interfere with what I can do.” This quote represents something I truly believe in, that I can make a difference in the world, no matter the size of the action. Each and every day I try to be a living example of this quote and do my part in order to make a difference in my community. I discovered my passion to make a difference at a young age when I attended the Nature Explorers Summer Camp at Little Cataraqui Region Conservation Authority here in Kingston. As I continued my involvement with the camp as a Leader in Training and a Volunteer I further developed my knowledge of conservation and environmental issues and began taking my passion for environmental education outside of the camp setting. As a grade twelve student at Bayridge Secondary School I have been involved in many initiatives throughout my high school career where I have educated others about environmental issues. I have been the Environment Minister at Bayridge since my third day of grade nine and throughout my four years at Bayridge I have organized our school’s Eco-Team and developed initiatives to produce an eco-conscious school. I decided to become involved in the Apprentice Ecologist initiative because it allowed me to continue sharing my passion for making a difference in the world.
One of my most notable initiatives was my role in the organization of the One Earth One Chance Environmental Summit. We held the first ever One Earth, One Chance summit in April 2011 at Bayridge Secondary School. The summit has now occurred three times and is becoming an annual initiative in our school board. The Environmental Summit is for local high schools and feeder elementary students to increase their awareness of environmental issues and empower students to affect change in their home schools. The summit is student driven; led and organized by students for students. Participants selected breakout sessions to attend. These sessions were designed and run by students as well as community members. This year workshops were based on various environmental topics ranging from Species at Risk , to Renewable Energy, the Forgotten World Food Crisis, and Our Threatened Oceans, just to name a few. Pictures from these workshops are shown to the right.
Students also attended a keynote address from Robyn Hamlyn, a youth water activist, and Rob Kiley, the local Green party representative. The keynote presentations effectively tied together the knowledge students had gained throughout their day and helped encourage students that they can make a difference. Students were provided with an "eco-friendly" lunch, comprised of 100 mile ingredients made by Bayridge's culinary arts class. The 170 Summit participants left the conference with new knowledge about the environment and ways that they can affect change in their schools and communities.
As the main student organizer of the summit, I took on all organizational, preparation, and evaluation stages of the summit. Firstly, I worked with staff in order to find grants to run the summit. When the planning of the summit began I contacted community presenters and invited them to run workshops at the event. I helped organize students who were attending the event, and found student presenters from various Environmental Science and World Issues classes at my school to present at the event. I always helped with set up on the days leading up to the event, and ensured everything was ready for the event to be successful. On the day of the summit I assisted presenters with workshops, ran my own workshop, acted as the emcee for the day, and ensured everything was running smoothly. After the summit was over I was involved in evaluation of the event and working with staff to look at how the event ran, and what can be improved for next year.
They gained extracurricular experiences to help them with initiatives at their home schools. This will help students across the city get involved in environmental initiatives and promote environmental awareness in their schools and community. These initiatives will impact the city of Kingston as they will contribute to Kingston’s goal of becoming the most sustainable city in Canada. Bayridge Secondary School and the One Earth One Chance project are affiliated with Sustainable Kingston their actions to make the city sustainable. The summit has also earned Bayridge the recognition of being one of thirty schools across the country named as an Eco-Canada Green High School. Youth are our future and by inspiring them to make a difference today, it will make for a better tomorrow.
My experiences with the One Earth One Chance Environmental Summit have helped shape who I am today and what I aim to do in my future. I plan to study Environmental Studies in University and become a teacher so I can continue spreading my passion for environmental issues. I hope to inspire my future students and teach them that we do in fact only have One Earth and One Chance, and they can make a difference.
Date: November 27, 2013 Views: 4646 File size: 15.9kb, 533.8kb : 2032 x 1354
Hours Volunteered: 200
Volunteers: 20
Authors Age & Age Range of Volunteers: 17 & 14 to 45
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