Humber courses go green

Educators at Humber College’s Urban Ecology Centre, through a series of new courses and certificate programs, have made it their mission to equip future generations with a wealth of environmental knowledge.

The 13 courses are three hours in length and touch upon everything from ecosystems theory to environmental literacy. They can also be used towards two certificates of participation: Thinking Environmentally and Environmental Education.

Rebecca Niblett, a nature interpreter at the Centre for Urban Ecology, developed the new courses and will also be teaching them come February. She says that although many of the courses are geared towards educators, they are also suited to anyone who has a general interest in the environment.

“People really want to do something about the environment but it’s so difficult to know what it is that they should do,” she says. “We’re trying to get people together, empower them, build towards action, and learn from ideas so they can develop their own views and values of environmentalism.”

Niblett, who holds both a masters in environmental studies and certificate in environmental and sustainability education, says the courses will be taught in a fun way using the popular education method.

“You start with the knowledge that students bring themselves and then you build upon that,” she says of the concept. “Learning centres around the learner rather than the teacher.”

That means participants can look forward to interactive games, group discussions and hands-on nature activities.

One of courses in the Thinking Environmentally certificate even focuses on how to stay hopeful about the deteriorating state of the planet.

“A lot of people feel a lot of fear and despair about the environment,” says Niblett. “We need to talk about those things instead of just ignoring them and pretending they’re not there.”

The courses will be held in Humber’s 5,000-sq.-ft. Centre for Urban Ecology, which boasts a slew of environmentally-friendly design features, such as passive solar heat sources and a green roof. Opened in April 2007, the space received prestigious LEED Gold certification from the Canada Green Building Council.

Barb Fox, co-ordinator of the Centre for Urban Ecology, says the new courses, the centre and the surrounding Humber arboretum are a perfect match.

“The courses are going on in a building that represents exactly what these courses are trying to teach the public,” says Fox.

“We’ve got 220 acres here that are unique to the city of Toronto. You’re not going to go anywhere else in the city and find the diversity of life or the diversity of habitat we’ve got here.”