City EcoAction School
Ralph Klein Park or Inglewood Bird Sanctuary or Reader Rock Garden
City EcoAction School provides students and teachers with skills that contribute to a healthy and caring city by connecting to urban parks and natural areas. Environmental sustainability is promoted at a community level by encouraging the application of sustainable ‘eco-actions’. This program fosters engaged and informed citizens who can make eco-friendly choices for Calgary’s future.
Ideas for inspiration could include:
- Examine environmental topics including human-wildlife interactions, watershed stewardship, and biodiversity
- Connect students to nature through inquiry-based outdoor learning experiences
- Explore the value of Calgary’s urban parks and the importance of wetland ecosystems
- Analyze environmental issues and develop solutions from a multidimensional lens
Contact
Leah Elford (she, her, hers)
With a Bachelor’s of Science in Psychology and Environmental Studies, and over eight years teaching programs with Calgary Parks, Leah is a wealth of knowledge when it comes to the natural world. She has also spent time developing programs for Parks Canada, The Calgary Horticultural Society and Girl Guides of Canada. Leah is an avid explorer, birder and naturalist, who believes in building connections with the natural world, but also in building on-going relationships to the landscape. You can regularly find her in the garden, hiking with her husband and two dogs, or canoeing down the river.
Email: parksprograms@calgary.ca
Rachelle Gauvin
Rachelle is an experienced informal educator with a decade of experience teaching school and public programs about nature and science. She has worked at Calgary Zoo, TELUS Spark, and has even led tours in the rainforests of Costa Rica. She is currently on her seventh year with the City of Calgary Parks. Rachelle has a Bachelor of Science in Zoology and a Master of Arts in Environmental Education and Communication. She is passionate about connecting people to their local environment, and believes that everyone should know their wild neighbors as well as their human ones. Her hobbies include birdwatching, reading fantasy novels, and going on long park walks with her two dogs.
Email: rachelle.gauvin@calgary.ca