UPDATE
A dedicated environmental education champion, Keefer Ecological Services, and a second anonymous donor have stepped up to match your donation for environmental education, up to $3,500! That means your gift will be doubled, giving twice as many of kids the opportunity to learn from the wild.
It’s a warm day in early September and my daughter and I are exploring the nature park behind our house. While we walk the trails we listen to the sounds of the forest. “A chickadee!” she calls out, and we both listen as the chickadee sings.
Later that night, I thought about our time spent in nature together this summer, getting an education of the wild kind. Do you remember the first time you recognised a bird call? Or identified a grizzly bear paw in the mud? For me, each moment of wild wonder has led to a lifetime spent cherishing and wanting to protect the wild – and I think you understand that deeply, too.
I know that every moment spent in the wild with my daughter is a privilege – for her as well as for me. What if we could give every kid in our community the opportunity to learn from the wild? I have some good news: you can give this incredible gift to youth this year.
Wildsight environmental education creates generational change, following students through their entire school lives from kindergarten to grade 12. At five, kids experience the wonder of winter, some seeing the magic of the season for the first time. Starting in grade four, Beyond Recycling takes kids on a unique 24-week journey to achieve positive environmental change in their own lives and communities. Immersive programs like the Columbia River Field School challenge teens to explore the deep and complex stories told by our region’s mountains and rivers.
Has an experience in the wild deeply impacted your life? Can you imagine a world where every child can develop a deeper, reciprocal relationship with nature — to truly love the wild? In the feedback from youth in these programs, they tell us their lives have been changed.
Will you give today and provide life-changing experiences for our children and youth? You will not only be changing lives, but changing the world. That’s amazing.
There is hope in the wonder of nature. A better future for our kids and the planet lies ahead, but only if our youth have the tools for it. Environmental education is crucial. Some of these kids will grow up to fight for nature in their careers and lives — thanks to your gift.
The next morning, for the first day of school, my daughter asked to bring our bird book, to show new friends the chickadee. There are apps to identify bird calls now, but nothing can replace a deep connection to nature by knowing – and by sharing.
Will you share your love for the wild?
For the wild,
Jill Jennings
Education Coordinator
p.s. Join our dedicated group of monthly donors today and get kids learning outside, all year round.
Keeping it wild for wolverines
