January Newsletter: Sharing Gratitude & Excitement for 2024!
Happy New Year! We hope you had a memorable holiday season and a positive start to 2024. At Be the Change, we are energized and excited for the year ahead!
Hello,
BTCEA Executive Director Recognized as Top 30 Sustainability Leader Under 30
We are thrilled to announce our Executive Director, George Radner, was recognized by Corporate Knights magazine as one of Canada’s Top 30 Sustainability Leaders Under 30!
Message from George:
“I am humbled by this recognition, but my work has always been team-based, not individual. This award belongs to the team of dedicated, diverse staff at Be the Change who’ve empowered over 15,000 students and 1,100 teachers in the last two years through action-oriented workshops, learning resources and mentorship programs. ”
Are you excited about Be the Change’s growing impact in BC schools and communities? You can help us continue to empower thousands of youth through a tax-deductible donation! Donations before Giving Tuesday (Nov 30) will be MATCHED by generous donors!
Climate education and action are needed now more than ever. With extreme weather linked to climate change increasingly affecting our communities, youth today are genuinely scared for their futures. But it’s not too late to help youth overcome their climate anxiety and take meaningful action to avert the worst of the climate crisis! Chip in $5, $25, or $100 to empower youth climate leaders!
Youth for Community Rain Gardens!
This fall, Be the Change has been supporting an incredible group of youth at Reality Church in Vancouver to create a Rain Garden! Rain Gardens are gardens designed with plants that are great at absorbing water. They help prevent urban pollutants such as fertilizers, litter, and tailpipe toxins from entering local waterways through rainwater run-off, and essentially act as a natural storage and water filter that helps protect the health of local freshwater species and ecosystems!
With the help and guidance by our friends at Cougar Creek Streamkeepers, we worked in collaboration with the youth to dig, root, and plant a Rain Garden on Reality Church’s site in East Vancouver.
As we were planting the Rain Garden, a rain storm flooded the Reality Church building and the youth saw first hand the effects of climate change on our communities. This event demonstrates the importance of this project, as Rain Gardens help capture and store stormwater run-off that flows from impervious urban surfaces like roads and roofs.
Our Rain Garden at Reality Church was officially completed November 7th, 2021. The young plants will grow as they absorb water over the coming months. Next year, Be the Change will be working with a new cohort of youth to develop a Rain Garden at Richmond Presbyterian Church!
Photo of Reality Church's youth group working on the Rain Garden.
Photo of the rain garden in action during the recent rain storm.
That’s all for now! Thanks for reading!
Sincerely,
Shalen Chen,
Environmental Justice Education & Resource Coordinator
Latest posts
December 2023 Newsletter - ⛄‘Tis the season to celebrate at Be The Change!⛄
As 2023 comes to a close and school winds down for winter break, we’re taking a moment to reflect back over the past year. 2023 was a very regenerative time for BTCEA! We developed and delivered our Climate Action, Resilience, and Emotions (CARE) program in communities on the frontlines of wildfires in our province. And as an organization, we prioritized creating space to discuss what decolonization could look like both internally, and in our programming. Here are the highlights:
Oct 2023 Newsletter - Check out our mid-October climate-justice resources!
Hello,
An introduction from Communications Coordinator, Lucy Wicken
Dear Be The Change community,
As we approach mid-October, I’m reflecting on the changing seasons, from the warm and active days of summer to the cooler and quieter days of autumn. Personally, I’ve noticed a desire to slow down, take on fewer responsibilities, and stay inside where it’s cozy. Have you felt this way too?
As 21st century humans living in a world that operates under capitalism, white supremacy, and other oppressive systems, we can be made to feel guilt or shame about listening & responding to our needs. We are expected to maintain the same energy and productivity levels throughout the year, no matter how cold or dark the days are, how heavy world events feel, or how much we’re struggling in our personal lives.
This is where the concept of regenerative education comes in. Introduced to the BTCEA team by former staff member Jake, regenerative education calls on us to slow down and turn inward to consider our connection with the natural world. It asks us to examine the living systems that are breaking down due to violent human activity (such as fossil fuel extraction, destruction of Indigenous lands, and human-caused flooding and wildfires) and connect this breakdown with our own high levels of stress.
