Environmental Education Brainstorming Workshop
Saturday I led a brainstroming session on enviromental education. This session was a collaboration between MIE, Greening Duluth and the Maison de l’Amitié. Throughout the session we brainstromed ideas for creating enviromental education activities and lessons to include in the english and french classes at Maison de l’Amitié. To start off the session we introduced ourselves and the different initives collaborating on this project. In this collaboration Maison de l’Amitié is the main actor in carrying out the enviromental education through their language classes. Greening Duluth works on the ground helping to impliment the environmental education, give teachers training opportunities and provide new materials and ideas for curriculum. MIE acts as a facilitator, questioning western-enviromental assumptions, maintaining cross-cultural enviromental awareness the curriculum, as well as contributing ideas for curriculum.

Towards the middle of our time together, the group of 17 broke into 4 groups to brainstorm on concrete lesson plans for the 4 levels of classes. Here’s an example of one lesson plan for an intermediate class. It involves each student bringing an object from home and presenting the object by tracing history of an object (the raw materials used to make it, the place it was made, how it got to be where it was bought). To dicuss the history of the object they would have to practice the past tenses. Next student could discuss, using the present how they are using the object. Lastly, using the future tenses, students would consider the future of the object, what will happen when they are done using it.

We concluded the workshop by sharing our ideas and giving feedback. Next, participants from the workshop will compile more detailed lesson plans. Then we’ll meet again in March to give feedback and finish the final drafts of lesson plans we well as look at how we can go beyond just lesson plans and broaden the scope of our activiites.

Saturday, I spent the afternoon at a brainstorming and planning session of MIE (Mouvement Intercultural pour l'Environment). MIE is a new non-profit org that was envisioned by several workers at Éco Quartiers . In Montreal, each borrow has an Éco Quartiers that serves to educate constituents of recycling programs, provide composting materials, do environmental education and conduct workshops on environmental issues. MIE was created because several Éco Quartiers workers felt that environmental education is often not culturally sensitive and applicable for different cultural communities in the city. Here is MIE’s noble mission statement:

Intercultural Movement for the Environment is an environmental non-profitable organization that aims to incorporate culture as a part of environmental thinking, and integrate environmental consciousness in all cultural communities. Our role is to provide a platform that allows for active dialogues and exchanges of knowledge between all stakeholders, and at the same time, foster home-grown environmental culture. We welcome diverse points of view, ask for cultural and political sensitivity from all members, and place emphasis on communication.

I see great value in the mission and aspirations of the organization, and I’m really excited about its potential! It seems like a perfect fusion of my interests of anthropology and environmentalism. So I jumped right on board- I have taken the position of Secretary for the brand new board of directors of MIE. It should be a fabulous experience of learning how starting a non-profit works, reflecting on and promoting environmentalism and multiculturalism, and getting to know a diverse group of people who have similar interests to me. As secretary one of my tasks is getting/keeping the MIE blog updated. So check back there soon to hear about our plans and up coming events!