The Story of Stuff Project’s journey began with a 20-minute online movie about the way we make, use and throw away all the Stuff in our lives. The Story of Stuff is a catalyst for change . . . Five years and … Continue reading
Category Archives: Learning for Sustainability
Te Ara i Takahia – online resource showcases an inspiring restoration project
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Te Aho Tū Roa and Toimata Foundation are proud to share Te Ara i Takahia an online resource showcasing the inspiring awa restoration project undertaken by Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Te Rawhiti Roa, a kura leading leading the way … Continue reading
Creating Catalysts for Change – 2017 focus
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Our focus for 2017 is Creating Catalysts for Change.
The development of Enviroschools was driven by a burning question:
What if school could be a place that empowers young people to design, plan, take action and lead the change – in their classrooms, in their schools, in their neighbourhoods, in their country?”
The issues facing humanity can feel overwhelming; they are complex, interconnected, and global in scale. We often find ourselves saying, ‘every one makes a difference”, but we can just as validly ask “are we really?” How do we really know we are making a difference? You might put out your recycling, compost your food waste, grow your own food, take public transport or ride your bike, but you still wonder if, in the scheme of things, things are getting better. The world’s population will reach 7.5 billion in 2017 and is estimated to reach 11.2 billion in 2100. With only one Earth, the pressures on our planet are ballooning. It’s time to look how we as individuals, schools and communities can really “be the change we want to see in the world”, and how we can influence and inspire others.
Hutia te rito o te harakeke
Kei hea te komako e ko?
Maku e ki ake
He tangata, he tangata, he tangata
Pluck the heart from the flax bush – where will the bellbird sit?
Ask me, what is the most important thing in the world?
I will reply,
it is people, it is people, it is people.
The purpose of this focus is to provide inspiration and tools to support teachers to go deeper with existing issues and inquiry and allow classes and students to really explore how their actions can make a difference. Action is a core part of the Enviroschools kaupapa – What actions will bring about the changes that we want? How can these actions go deeper? How can our actions influence others?
The resources materials are available here:
Key Concepts and Questions
Case studies and examples for catalysts for change
Hillcrest Normal School students Win Mean Green House Competition
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Congratulations to Isla Wilkinson, Arlo Oliver and Alena Zhu from Room 7 at Hillcrest Normal School who have won the Year 5 and 6 category in the Mean Green House competition – a national competition run by Genesis Energy. The … Continue reading
Waste not, Want not . . . revisiting Zero Waste
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The theme area of Zero Waste is one that many schools embrace in response to an easily identified situation in the school grounds. This often starts with a discussion (staffroom and classroom) about what the issue is and then is … Continue reading
Everything is Connected at Hamilton Gardens
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Last Wednesday was a wonderful example of how children learn by doing, as 250 students from 26 Enviroschools joined together at Hamilton Gardens to celebrate the year’s theme of ‘whanaunatanga’. We were welcomed by the beautiful voices of Hillcrest Normal Kapahaka … Continue reading
Getting connected in the Kauaeranga Valley
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Last Friday around 100 students, and 25 teachers and parents representing 9 Enviroschools, came together for an event based around the theme of ‘Everything is Connected – Whanaungatanga’ in the Kauaeranga Valley at the Department of Conservation Visitor Centre. Most of … Continue reading
Bringing back the birds to the Hauraki Plains
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Students at Netherton Primary have initiated a vision to ‘bring back the birds’ to the Hauraki Plains. A milestone was realized this year when children planted out the first of the native trees that they had grown themselves in kahikatea … Continue reading
Outlook for Someday film challenge workshops
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Outlook for Someday is a film challenge for young New Zealanders based on sustainability. MAKE A SHORT FILM On any camera you like Any genre you like Any length up to 5 minutes Anyone up to the age of 24 can … Continue reading
Mangaiti Gully Restoration at Rototuna Primary
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Nearly 800 children at Rototuna Primary School took part in the school’s second annual plant out of their school gully in May. Children and staff alike were gobsmacked by the change and growth that had happen since last year’s planting. … Continue reading
The Big Picture – Everything is Connected
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Bugman, Ruud Kleinpaste takes to the mountains to explore how our health, well-being, and survival depend on the health, well-being and survival of our planet’s ecosystems. From the mountains, rivers and forests to the water we drink and the food we eat, everything is connected and everything, from the tiniest of bugs, has a role to play — including us.
For more visit http://www.doc.govt.nz/bigpicture
Pollinators Vital to Our Food Supply Under Threat
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A growing number of pollinator species worldwide are being driven toward extinction by diverse pressures, many of them human-made, threatening millions of livelihoods and hundreds of billions of dollars worth of food supplies, according to the first global assessment of … Continue reading
Students and gardens flourish at Te Aroha Primary
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Holly Brittenden and her class of Year 6 and 7 students lived and learnt sustainability at Te Aroha Primary in 2015. When the students identified their learning and behaviour needs at the start of the year, it became obvious to … Continue reading
Aquaponics teaches everything is connected
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A problem become an opportunity at Wairakei Primary School, when students were exploring alternatives for growing food in Taupo’s poor soils and cold climate. Students had come across hydroponics, which lead them on to aquaponics, a way to grow food … Continue reading
A journey of a lifetime for Hillcrest Normal students
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Stacey Vowles, teacher from Hillcrest Normal Primary shares her experiences with the Virtual Great Walker competition win: Last year the Department of Conservation with sponsorship from Air NZ, ran the Virtual Great Walker competition, aimed at getting Kiwi kids out walking … Continue reading
Waikato Enviroschools 