In spite of uncertainty and the need for changes in how to continue implementing parts of the program, EcoSchools, now in its tenth year, is alive and well. Schools often sent different representatives to kick-offs this year, but we still saw many of you! Our thanks to everyone for carrying on; our unwavering support goes to all members of the EcoSchools community, whether or not you will be able to certify this year. Some actions may have to be put on hold, but the values remain unchanged.

Job action is becoming more stringent. Fortified by " Seven Lessons for Leaders in Systems Change," we will be looking for "breakthrough opportunities" to continue to support you in the midst of the current turmoil. 

This year's half-day elementary professional development "kick-off" sessions gave special attention to ecological literacy. The challenge that exists to implementing EcoSchools is partly offset by this focus on the Ontario Curriculum's environmental education expectations.

In total, 316 schools attended the kick-offs, 258 elementary and Outdoor Education Centres, and 58 secondary schools. Elementary workshops were held at 20 local schools, allowing schools in the same Family to network. Our special thanks to the host schools, every one of whom has agreed to host again next year. Now that's commitment!!

The four secondary whole-day kick-off workshops at the U of T focused on building student leadership capacity using the environment and the EcoSchools program as contexts for learning. This design helped to meet one of EcoSchools' obligations--to respond to students' undiminished desire to become more skilled and knowledgeable champions of the environment. The 22% increase in student attendance over last year reflects the new secondary workshop design tailored especially to meet students' needs. And it was a lot of fun!!

"Apply for certification" means going online and telling us you plan to (re)certify. It does not mean pressing the "submit" button! If you accidentally press submit, your file is locked. We have unlocked these files so that you can continue to access your application. Just go back into your application and re-enter your password to continue working.

To register, simply fill out the contact information and click "next," and that's it! You may decide to begin filling out some of the EcoReview questions once you're online.

The final deadline for submitting your application to be (re)certified is Friday, April 26th. We urge you to consider the benefits to re-certifying, even if at a different level before making a final decision. Registering doesn't mean you have to complete the process; it simply tells us you might--please stay in touch! We want to support you however we can.

EcoSchools Section 4: Question 4.2, 4.3

Every week Science and Technology highlights one of its kits in Direct Line. Helping our students develop their ecological literacy depends partly on the knowledge and skills they absorb in studying science. The kits offer students hands-on experience that often sticks when other modes of learning do not. Here we simply list some of the kits featured recently. 

Book the Habitats and Communities Kit to allow your Grade 4 class to investigate how nature organizes itself (and touch on the ecological principles of networks, energy flows, cycles, and dynamic balance...you may not even use these names!) and ponder the impact that humans have on ecosystems in our midst.

Use the  microscope kit to animate your grade 8 unit on cells. It also presents a good opportunity to talk about nested systems, a basic ecological concept describing one of nature's awesome patterns (4 microscopes with glass slides for viewing cellular structures in each kit--and you can book more than one).

Bioneers' award-winning radio series of half-hour shows feature some of the best presentations from its annual conference. If the pace of life slows down this holiday season, why not treat yourself to one of the mind-expanding

EcoSchools Section 1: QUestion 1.5, 1.6, 1.7 and Section 4: Question 4.5  

What are students doing to keep our EcoSchools spirits healthy, enriching, and alive?

• Recycling: Try out inspecting classroom recycling bins before agreeing to pick them up. Bins that are improperly sorted are tagged with a brief note describing the changes needed. Collect the bin when it's properly sorted. Of course there's all sorts of work to prepare for such a move, but what a great way to (1) give your school recycling practice new life, (2) educate your school mates, and (3) reduce your work! Learn while doing--and practice being environmental stewards!
• Make people-planet connections: Tie eco-messages into your character traits assemblies. For example, how often might cooperation with/kindness to a person also be connected to cooperation with/kindness to the Earth? Write and tell us if you are already doing this!
• Promote energy conservation awareness and action while having fun! Host a Sweater Day and have a weekly Earth Hour in February.

EcoSchools Section 4: Question 4.4 

This newsletter normally tries to present content you can understand. With this TED talk we had to make an exception. Scientist Paul Stamets' presentation is full of heady science, getting more complex as it goes along. We suspect only readers with a lot of knowledge about chemistry and biology will fully understand it. LISTEN TO IT ANYWAY! Non-science readers can still get its gist and, we suspect, marvel at the idea that mycelium is "the Earth's natural internet." Stamets sees the mycelium present in old growth forests as so important they should be saved as "a matter of national defense"!

Even if you only last til the part about how mushrooms alone could remove diesel fuel from dirt when all other methods failed (the 8:09 minute mark), it is awesome. Nature's designs are a source of hope. 

We've linked this story to prize give-aways of four mushroom-growing kits for your classroom (see below)...almost certainly suited for any grade but may be especially inspiring when twinned with learning some of the science involved in this brilliant guy's research discoveries. Does it raise lots of questions? Of course--good science always does.

EcoSchools Section 4: Question 4.4, 4.5 

We have four kits to give away. All you have to do to enter is send us a couple of sentences that talk about a tree or trees and school grounds...real or imagined, past or present.

Please title your message "Mushroom kit draw: my thoughts on trees in school grounds" and include your name, grade(s) and/or subject(s) taught, and school. 

Deadline for submission is Friday, January 10th 2013.  

EcoSchools Section 4: Question 4.2, 4.4 

Gail Bornstein and Bruce Day met this tree when they were doing a School Ground Design Consultation at Huron PS. And brought back this picture to share. That's when the question came up: Why should we care about an old tree?

How many school grounds have a tree this large? If you are one of the lucky schools, do you wonder how old your big tree is? And what kind of tree it is?  

Trees are the world's biggest plants. And they offer us so much! "How do I love thee? Let me count the ways"... as Shakespeare might have put it. Test yourself--how many benefits can you name?

How can we figure out how old a tree is? The surest way is knowing when it was planted (just like knowing someone's birth date). We all know that counting rings is another way, but this tree is healthy and doesn't need cutting down. Gail Bornstein says that the bark of this silver maple tells us that it's old (just like an old person's skin!). A young silver maple has smooth, light grey bark. Knowing a tree's growth rate is a reliable way that a forester would use to calculate a tree's age. Trees grow at different rates--Silver Maples grow quickly. (You could look it up!)  

If this tree could talk, what might it tell us? This tree is about 150 years old. What might it tell us about life as a tree in Toronto in all those years? Was it in a forest or a farmer's field? (Trees in a forest grow more slowly. Can you think why?) What did the people who lived nearby do day by day?

The English poet John Keats said "a thing of beauty is a joy forever." Surely he was thinking of trees!

EcoSchools Section 5: Question 5.7 

Do you know anyone between 16 and 18 who is actively using social media to teach and communicate about environmental issues? If yes, then please pass on this survey.

The survey will help identify 30 young environmental activists from around the world for a 6-month study about how they use social media to communicate about the environmental and social justice issues that matter most to them.

EcoSchools Section 4 Question 4.6, 4.7 and Section 5 Question 5.7

Toronto's casual flirtation with banning plastic bags has recently been squelched. But in our schools, our teachers continue to inspire and be inspired by students who will grow up to make different choices--and create a different world. What can we learn from what is happening elsewhere?

Try out Factory Direct Promos' new interactive plastic-bag-ban world map that tracks how places all over the world are addressing the plastic bag problem and its possible solutions. Click on one of the color-coded pins to learn why some places have a law that prohibits plastic bags, uncover where efforts to implement a bag ban were unsuccessful, and discover the path that different places have taken which led to a tax or fee in place of disposable bags. Neat lens for viewing the world through this environment-friendly action!

"We choose to create a restored, vibrant and just world because we are willing to walk alongside our heartbreak and our fear. We do this for those who will pay the price if we fail. And we do it for those who will carry this incalculable hardship if we waver. And for those who are watching to see if we will choose to have more stuff or more life. We do this not because it's lucrative or furthers our prospects. We do this because it mobilizes and enlivens our spirit and intelligence."   

The EcoSchools values you pass on of interdependence, cooperation, and caring for the Earth are important to the lives of us all. They matter especially to the young people you teach every day. A little girl in England once said to her teacher "If I care for the environment, I care for myself." That is an incredible leap of connection in one so young. And that idea of caring--for the environment, for ourselves, and for each other has to be at the centre of what we do and who we are.

The current labour situation makes doing some things in school difficult. You may or may not be able to carry on with parts of your EcoSchools program; we know people are doing what they can. We also know that you never stop caring for your students, just as those brave teachers in Newtown Connecticut never stopped. And that, as President Obama said, is the most important thing of all. You are doing one of society's most important jobs, and no words can say thank you enough.

The holidays are nearly here. From all the EcoSchools staff we wish you a time of peace and thanksgiving. And we look forward to doing our best to support you in the New Year.

Best wishes from the Communications team,

Eleanor Dudar, Jenn Vetter, and Diana Suzuki