Second International Youth Symposium
For Biodiversity July 5- 9, 2009/ Ottawa, Canada
The Beginning
The Macoun Marsh Project is the concept project from which ‘biodiversitymatters.org’ has evolved. We are located in Ottawa Ontario, and we are a community based initiative comprised of students, teachers and interested and dedicated community members. The site is located in Ottawa’s Beechwood Cemetery. The marsh can be clearly seen on Google Earth in the south east corner of the cemetery adjacent St. Laurent Boulevard. The project started in earnest some years ago under the direction of Michael Leveille a teacher at St. Laurent Academy, and has since grown into something extraordinary with world wide reach. Initially, a place where Mike took his students to learn scientific "journaling" and ecology lessons, the concept of the Macoun Marsh Project has since evolved into a community endeavor that celebrates biodiversity, education, youth and community.
2005 & 2006
In 2005, Michael Leveille (Educarium School) invited Clint Monaghan, a teacher at nearby Jean Vanier Catholic Intermediate, to allow his students the opportunity to study science at the local Macoun Marsh. This invitation was energetically accepted, and both schools have been enjoying the benefits of outdoor experiential learning ever since. Nature journaling and bioblitzing are two of the most common learning activities performed at the marsh. Bringing nature to the youth of an inner urban school has brought amazing success to the students of Mr. Monaghan’s while Mr. Leveille’s students continue to embrace nature journaling and continue to add to the species count almost on a daily basis. The learning is not only fun, but engaging at the same time. The beauty and magic of our take on experiential learning is that what we do is so simple, it can be duplicated anywhere. If we can find 1200 different species of life (count ongoing) in the middle of downtown urban Ottawa, than this concept can be duplicated in any environment.
Many educators now accept the fact that many of today’s youth, especially urban youth, have become detached from nature, many believe this to be a problem, and that problem is NDD; Nature Deficit Disorder. Many kids today are very disconnected from nature, especially inner city kids. Our project is a model of success for teachers and youth everywhere as to how easy is to get kids out there into nature. The benefits of our work will be seen well into the future.
In 2006, as partners, St. Laurent Academy and Jean Vanier Catholic School (under the name of the Macoun Marsh Project), entered our students in the prestigious VOLVO adventure, a youth environmental competition, and our entry was selected among hundreds to represent North America in Sweden at the youth symposium component of the competition. We celebrated and shared our project with the world and were able to bring home $6000 in prize money to put towards our project and its’ goals.
Our active website link below (the picture) is a wonderful place that we really hope you visit. Share your project with us in '09, and you'll experience it in person! Drop by our forum and say hi!
2007 & 2008
In 2007, the focus of the project was to raise money and community awareness in support of building an onsite observatory classroom to enhance student learning at the site. Through in-kind and other donations, we successfully raised approximately $100, 000 to help build an outdoor classroom. Students from Notre Dame, St. Pius and All Saint’s Catholic High School’s provided the labor and expertise to erect the observatory on site at the Marsh. June 2007 saw the official opening of the outdoor observatory. Through out the year, networking and partnerships began to solidify with the United Nations Secretariat on the Convention of Biological Diversity (SCBD) in Montreal. In conjunction with partnerships formed with the SCBD, we also hooked up with Dan Bisaccio of Habitat.net, who organized the world's first Youth Symposium on Biodiversity in Mexico in 2005.
In 2008, we officially became partnered with the Canadian Biodiversity Institute and habitat.net in an effort to promote and to host the world's Second Youth Symposium on Biodiversity, in Ottawa in July 2009. With the Macoun Marsh Project as the centerpiece, we will host other significant youth environmental initiatives as we develop another youth accord on biodiversity. Students from St. Laurent Academy attended TUNZA in Norway in June of 2008 to further promote the good work we do and the good work to come as well in 2009 at the would youth symposium. TUNZA is a United Nations Children’s event for environmental projects; we were honored to have been officially invited to the conference to share our project. Also, in June of ’08, Mr. Monaghan was recognized as Toyota Canada’s Champion of the Environment for 2008 for his dedication to his students and the Macoun Marsh Project.
