Trans-Canadian Environmental and Sustainability Education Resource Map

Across Canada, the prioritization of environmental and sustainability education (ESE) varies greatly and is often treated as a side-project. Many guides, lesson plans, and units exist to assist teachers to address gaps in the curriculum yet little support exists for implementation and transformation in formal education. Former University of Saskatchewan graduate student and SEPN alum, Adam Thomas Young, developed a tool to assist educators in navigating ESE resources. Based upon a Pan-Canadian networking resource analysis, the visual map he created identifies general trends in ESE across Canada, their degree of accessibility, and relevance to educators. It portrays the most popular resources and teases out the mobility of these resources between regions and partner organizations.

The themes discovered by the author reiterate those identified in the Canadian Environmental Grantmakers Network’s 2006 report Environmental Education in Canada: An Overview for Grantmakers. They include: little sharing between regions, language/cultural barriers (specifically limited French first-language, immersion, English as an additional language), a lack of First Nations perspectives, little continuation once programs are created, and the challenge to discuss controversial topics such as climate change. With this project, Adam Thomas Young hopes to highlight these ongoing curriculum gaps and inspire the creation of new resources to address them in the future.

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