AAEE Newsletter Chapter Update April 2024

Dear Australian Environmental Educator ACT community

It’s been an exciting start to the year with 3 successful events in the ACT thanks to Bonnie Johnson upskilling us with the Communication and Strategic Planning event, Monty Nixon’s inspiring ‘Country as Teacher’ and Kate Rhook’s very engaging tour of the Icon Water facilities. Thanks so much for joining us. There is more news from Australia wide in the latest OzEEnews. 

We're looking forward to meeting new and familiar faces at these events and others throughout the year. Let's work together to strengthen our connection for education for sustainability and environmental education in our schools, universities, our workplaces and the wider community. It is such an important foundation for all of our lives. Please invite your colleagues to join the Australian Association for Environmental Education through this link.

Click read more for all the updates including our picks of events, local, national, regional and global EE calendar updates, with links.

To receive these updates in your inbox, contact aaeeact@gmail.com and say hi!

Chapter Update November 2023

November 23 ACT Chapter Update  

by Viv Pearce OAM

ACT members have been busy winning awards in the past few months.

 

Wollongong Conference

At the AAEE Conference I was very happy, as Acting AAEE President, to present awards to not one but two of our local members. 

Firstly, to long term member Julie Armstrong founder of ACT for Bees, ACT and national AAEE environmental Educator for 2023. Julie has been a driving force both in ACT and nationally promoting the importance and need to support bees and other pollinators. Julie and her team have worked tirelessly through community events, schools, production of teaching resources and advocacy to our politicians, to increase community awareness of the vital role our pollinators play in the web of life and in our food production. The importance of wildlife corridors, year-round pollinator food and the devastating effects of pesticides and other human food production practises, are now better understood by communities and politicians due to Julie’s clear and passionate voice. 

 

Julie Armstrong AAEE environmental Educator for 2023

Monty Nixon, a PhD education student from University of Canberra (U.C) won the AAEE 2023 Brian Foreman Scholarship to enable him to attend the conference. At the conference Monty and fellow U.C student Jordan Harrison, delivered a very enjoyable and educative workshop on Country as Teacher. 

 

Monty Nixon (centre) and Jordan Harrison (third from left ) delivering Country as a Teacher

Both are AAEE Arthur Thyne Reid Foundation Teacher Education Student Scholarship holders and will through the scholarship, be members for the next couple of years, with the 5 other scholarship holders. ACT appreciate the infusion of enthusiasm and youth into our membership and the chance to mentor the next generation of environmental educators. 

The conference was uplifting, educative and enjoyable to all ACT members attending including myself. Helen McHugh and Sally Ingham (Australian National Botanic Gardens) gave an informative talk on ANBG new Plant Hub resource. ACT Sustainable Schools with Victoria Sustainable Schools and other State groups ran a successful roundtable which raised questions around the why and how of government funded programs that are delivered in the various parts of Australia. Other ACT attendees included Mary Clare Woodforde ( student scholarship holder), Glenys Patulny, Jodie Green (both ACT Executive members) and Keith Skamp (AAEE Fellow amongst a myriad of other exciting achievements).

Jodie and I were re-elected to ordinary member and Vice President respectively at AAEE AGM.

Other Awards

The Teaching Science Most Valuable Paper Award for 2022, announced at the CONASTA 23 conference in July was awarded to ACT members Keith Skamp and Jodie Green for their three-part series of papers, “Earth System Science Education and the Australian Curriculum: The way forward to sustainability.” An important contribution to our mindset on sustainability, we cannot understand the trees if we do not see the forest!

NatureArt Lab recently won the prestigious 2024 Telstra Best of Business ACT State Award for Building Communities. The business also won the 2023 ACT State Award for Promoting Sustainability and has been a finalist both years in other categories. NatureArt Lab is a unique purpose-led arts and environmental education centre which was established in 2017 by Julia Landford who is a passionate artist and nature lover. NatureArt Lab’s art classes, photography courses and nature tours make a difference to people’s lives and help people connect with nature in a deeper way. Julia has also been an active contributor to the AAEE ACT Chapter over many years, as well as supporting the national executive with the Environmental Educator of the Year Award. 

Julia Landford with NatureArt's Telstra Award

Other ACT Events

In September the AAEEACT Curriculum subcommittee had a productive meeting with ACT Sustainable Schools ,looking forward to how we can assist our teachers to include more sustainability into their day-to-day teaching. Watch this space for more focus next year.

Our national AAEE Environmental Educator Julie Armstrong in October ran an enjoyable and relaxing Forest Therapy walk in the Australian National Botanic Gardens for members. As environmental educators we have the opportunity in our busy, frantic world to promote the wellbeing advantages of being in and with nature.

November December Events and Updates

 Hi Fellow Environmental Educators 

Hope you have been busy bees these spring months and, leaping as we are towards the end of this term, did you know it's both Pollinator AND Frog ID weeks this week? See exciting resources below.

Looking forward to seeing you at the AAEE ACT Chapter AGM 24 November. It will be followed by a tour of the wonderful Southern Tablelands Ecosystems Park (STEP) garden at the National Arboretum and all friends and educators are welcome. Details here.  RSVP please to aaeeact@gmail.com

See below for great webinars and other events by your fellow ACT environmental educators.

Curious about what AAEE members and member groups are up to around Australia? Read the latest OzEE News here. 

Coming Up ...

Old Ways And New

Host a screening of 'The Story of Plastic' - brought to you by Story of Stuff

July 2020

From the ACT Chapter President 

To all those hardworking colleagues in the ACT who think Environmental Education is important (very important as the Climate Emergency becomes reality), well done you have made it to the end of the term! This has been a crazy exhausting year, some say it feels like an alternate reality ...

At a Glance - Events Coming Up

Plastic Free July; Host a screening of 'The Story of Plastic'; ACT Future Film Festival Competition; Trash Gather Educational Program - in-school workshops; 4th August ACT Green Ed Drinks - Online with the National Portrait Gallery

Autumn-Winter 2020 Update ACT Chapter HERE

Welcome to the Autumn-Winter edition of the ACT Chapter Update, sent every quarter to members, colleagues and friends of Earth, Nature, environmental and sustainability education in the ACT.

Summer-Autumn Update ACT Chapter HERE

Welcome to the Summer - Autumn edition of the ACT Chapter Update, sent every quarter to members, colleagues and friends of Earth, Nature, environmental and sustainability education in the ACT.

Spring-Summer Update ACT Chapter HERE

Welcome to the Spring / Summer edition of the ACT Chapter Update, sent every quarter to members, colleagues and friends of Earth, environmental and sustainability education in the ACT.

Remember, if you missed it you can still read all the national EE news from the September 2019 OzEEnews: it's available here in the members area.

But first, have a quick read of the local update, and save some dates for all the good things happening in both National Recycling Week and Australian Pollinator Week (both starting Nov 11).Some events will need to be booked ahead so get in now to not miss out.

Mighty Mobile Muster - We are all starting to herd our household and workplace mobile devices for the Actsmart Mobile Roundup - ACT is going for the World Record this year, and if we all pitch in apparently we are in with a good chance. No need to book to join the attempt at the World's Biggest Mobile Muster in National Recycling Week. Collection is at the Canberra Times Fountain on City Walk 8 am - 8 pm - more details about what can be deposited here.

Calendar

November 2019

Monday 4 - Call for Abstracts now open for 'Science Revealed',  CONASTA 69, the annual science education conference of the Australian Science Teachers Association (ASTA) being held in Canberra at the ANU 5-8 July 2020. Abstract submissions close 6 December 2019

Sunday 11-18 - Australian Pollinator Week, also check ACT for Bees website more information. Join the Wild Pollinator Count, which you can support by looking for ten minutes at one flower in your garden, nearby bush reserve or school. Take photos which help with identification (ID), iNaturalist and Canberra Nature Map are good resources for ID too. This engaging and vital project has now been running since 2014 (!).

Thursday 14 10.30 am Australian National Botanic Gardens Wild Pollinator Count walk. Please RSVP (actforbees@gmail.com ). This is an informal walk at the Australian National Botanic Gardens with Peter Abbott on Thursday 10.30 AM. Learn more about the native bees in the Botanic Gardens and also take part in the Wild Pollinator Count.

Monday 11-17 - National Recycling Week - lots on, too many to mention, head to the website ASAP.

Wednesday 20 - Actsmart Schools Awards Morning tea More about Actsmart Schools here (youtube)

Monday 25 - OzEENews member articles deadline for December 'EfS in 2019' edition - notes for contributors here.

December 2019

Tuesday 3 - AAEE Learning Circle - The New Sustainability Cross-Curricular priority Curriculum Map Resource. ZOOM 4.30-6 PM All welcome. RSVP aaeeact@gmail.com

Thursday 5 - World Soil day

Thursday 5 - Reminder if you are booked for the FREE Teacher workshop at Australian National Botanic Gardens. Very popular, let’s hope Bush Blitz and ANBG can run this again next year.

Term 1 2020
February Tues 11 and Thursday 13 - Parliament of Youth on Sustainability Teacher Sessions.

Term 4 2020
September TBC - National Biennial Environmental Education Conference - Mandurah, Western Australia.

Great news - AAEE have commissioned an Environmental Education 2020 calendar and Sea Week themed calendar-art competition, coming out soon for free download.

News, Thank you's and Congratulations

 Members and friends may like to congratulate Julia Landford - Nature Art Lab - and Taz Whan - Caroline Chisholm School - next time you see them. Julia has taken out the ACT Environmental Educator of the Year award for 2019, marking 3 decades of educational innovation and the beginning of a new creative and social business phase in EE.

Taz has taken out the inaugural ACT Environmental Educator Early Career Excellence award for 2019, with a list of EfS accomplishments as a new teacher that has to be seen to be believed.

Thank you to Professor Keith Skamp and Jenny Dibley for expert adjudication, and thank you Taz and Julia for all you do,  in particular for your wide-ranging and strategic environmental education leadership.

Look out for what these two AAEE members accomplish in 2020.

Just a few short weeks from now we will all be on the edge of our seats to see who has taken out the highly competitive ACTsmart Schools awards for 2019.

We'd just like to wish a very impartial Good Luck to all the nominees - some of whom are probably pictured here on the ACTsmart Schools recent EcoBus Day.

AAEE would like to take this opportunity to say thank you to ACT Smart Schools team, who have been doing such wonderful work in our schools delivering not only hands-on education for the sustainability cross-curriculum priority for our students but also high-quality world-leading EfS PD for our teachers.





NEWS JUST IN Nov 20 2019 Minister for Climate Change and Sustainability Shane Rattenbury today presented Merici College with the 2019 Sustainable School of the Year Award at the Actsmart Schools Awards.

Thank you to our retiring chapter secretary, NoWaste's, Robbie Ladbrook. Huge congratulations to Robbie and the NoWaste team for recently collecting a Sustainable Stories excellence award for NoWaste's education facility, the very amazing Recycling Discovery Hub. Book a public tour and see for yourself!

Thank you and congratulations to Bren Weatherstone and the TSCAC team on conclusion of another fabulous year of the ever-growing Threatened Species Childrens' Art Competition, one of the best and best run environmental education programs available for 5-12 year old's to engage with in Australia.






Thank you and congratulations to our retiring Youth Advisory Board member, first-year ANU student Clara McArthur, who a little bird told us might have received a special mention at the ACT Young Environmentalist of 2019 awards for her work mentoring SchoolStrike4Climate primary and high school students over the last 2 years. Well done Clara. 

It was wonderful to have both Robbie and Clara on the AAEE ACT team in 2019, and we wish them all the best in 2020.

Thank you to members Julie Armstrong (Act for Bees) and Kate Rhook (Icon Water) for help progressing the new ACT EE Directory - it is getting there and is going to be a wonderful way of taking the ACT Environmental Education network to new heights.

Thank you and welcome to the incoming committee for 2019-2020: Sue Jones (DanceKids), Viv Pearce (Australian National Botanic Gardens), Jodie Green (Young Persons' Plan for the Planet and AAEE), Tarun Whan (Science Educators Association ACT and ACT Education), Bren Weatherstone (Threatened Species Childrens' Art Competition) and Julia Landford (Nature Art Lab).

Viv and Jodie for the ACT AAEE team