Kateri School Students excell in Caring for our Watershed Program
Posted on May 3
Mark Cardinal (left) and Andrea Noskiye (right)
On May 3rd 2014, the Battle River Watershed Alliance hosted the Final Competition for their annual Caring For our Watersheds program. Of the 299 students who entered from across central and northern Alberta, one of the eleven finalist groups was from the Northland School Division No.61. Other finalists hailed from Fort McMurray SD, Battle River SD, Lakeland Catholic SD, Wolf Creek SD, and Edmonton SD . Below is a summary of all of the finalists.
|
Place |
Student Names |
Idea |
School Division |
School, Location |
Prize Amount |
|
1 |
Sofia Capettini, Ava Funkhouser, Tizita Hill, Michaela Reitsma |
Aquaponics Food System |
Wolf Creek Public Schools |
Ecole Secondaire Composite, Lacombe |
$1000 |
|
2 |
Isaac Boddy |
Hummingbird Garden |
Wisdom Homeschooling |
Homeschool, Forestburg |
$900 |
|
3 |
Tyler Elder |
Landscaping with Xeriscaping |
Battle River |
Bashaw School, Bashaw |
$800 |
|
4 |
Simran Panesar |
Toonies for Trees Campaign |
Edmonton Public Schools |
A. Blair McPherson, Edmonton |
$700 |
|
5 |
Jenelle Chen, Christina Luu |
Compost Fertilizer |
Edmonton Public Schools |
Londonderry Junior High, Edmonton |
$600 |
|
6 |
Mark Cardinal, Andrea Noskiye |
Sustainable Development |
Northland No. 61 |
Kateri School, Trout Lake |
$500 |
|
7 |
Jared Chevrie, Mckaila Tunstall, Desiree St. Amant |
Cattail Buffering Study |
Lakeland Catholic |
Notre Dame High School, Bonnyville |
$450 |
|
8 |
Brogan Middleton |
Watershed Education Program |
Battle River |
Bashaw School, Bashaw |
$400 |
|
9 |
Ashley Bilhete, Judzeah Sagstuen |
Electronic Recycling |
Edmonton Public Schools |
John D. Bracco, Edmonton |
$350 |
|
10 |
Madyson Thomsen |
Water Recycling |
Battle River |
Charlie Killam, Camrose |
$300 |
|
10 |
Maham Fatima |
Acid Rain Awareness |
Fort McMurray Public Schools |
Ecole McTavish, Fort McMurray |
$300 |
Finalists from the NSD won $500 for themselves and their schools!
The Caring for our Watersheds program asks students in Grades 7-12 from across Central Alberta “What can you do to improve your watershed?” Students develop a written proposal describing their project idea. A group of community judges mark the proposals and invite the finalist to prepare a verbal presentation for the Final Competition. Finalists all receive a cash prize, as well as matching prize amount for their school.
“The purpose of the contest is simple,” says Lindsey Metheral, from the program sponsor Agrium. “Our goal is to encourage students to learn about their local watershed and be inspired to make improvements to the land, air and water. With community and school support, we have seen the creativity and determination students have for protecting and preserving the environment. It’s inspiring when they turn their ideas into reality.”
“Over the years the community has shown great leadership in mentoring the students and helping them implement their ideas. Anyone who entered in 2014 can work towards making their idea happen. We are here to help them,” said Nathalie Stanley, Education and Outreach Coordinator from the Battle River Watershed Alliance. “Several students from Bashaw school had ideas on how to make the new Bashaw school greener, such as with low-flow toilets. I hope to be able to offer some funding and support to the school to make these students’ ideas a reality.” Agrium offers $10,000 worth of implementation funds each year to interested students.
The Caring For our Watersheds competition is a great fit for project-based learning in both junior and senior high classes, and fits well into the science and social science curriculum. Local program representatives are available for classroom visits and student mentoring.
For more information, please contact the Central Alberta Program Coordinator Nathalie Stanley at nathalie@battleriverwatershed.ca or visit CaringforourWatersheds.com