YOUth in Nature: experiential education funded by eco-tourism

Kids, youth and adults everywhere are suffering from Nature Deficiency Disorder – and our environment, communities and economies are suffering because of it.

Please vote for us daily so we can host multi-day, hands-on “Forest-to-Sea” environmental education programs in partnership with targeted groups who could benefit from an incredibly beautiful space in which to enhance team building and personal leadership skills. By making Galiano Island B.C. a destination for “Restorative Education and Re-creation”, we will model how people across Canada can fund free programs for youth by gaining income from adults who are willing and able to pay for the same services.

In cooperation with Schools, First Nations, Grandparents raising grandchildren, Immigrants & Refugees, Youth groups, Environmental education programs, Homeschoolers, Post-secondary students, Street-involved youth, Faith communities, Non-profit organizations and other groups who are interested, we will provide rural, suburban and inner city folks alike with the opportunity to get your hands dirty, making a real difference. Whether you get to repopulate a damaged forest with diverse native plants or increase habitat for marine creatures by transplanting eelgrass, the experience is unforgettable for many who would never get the chance to be in nature otherwise - let alone having a positive role to heal it!

With your votes and the support of the Aviva Community Fund, we would be able to expand the Galiano Conservancy’s well established and popular day-long programs so that participants can stay overnight for several days, bonding with each other while you explore and learn how to restore multiple ecosystems: coastal forest, wetlands, stream, beach, and ocean - even our endangered Garry Oak meadows. Whether coming from Greater Vancouver, Vancouver Island, other Gulf Islands or beyond – participants will return home with the inspiration, knowledge and confidence needed to make the shift to a climate-friendly and sustainable future.

In addition to restoring the local environment, your vote will help improve the economy and community of Galiano Island as well. We are looking to work with the Galiano Dive Club, a new cooperatively-run social enterprise in the making, in order to increase much-needed local employment opportunities for young adults and year round residents in the off-season for tourism. We will work with the community to set up the accommodation, meals and recreation needed to make these special residential camps incredible!

Youth and adults - whether locals in need of environmental enrichment or “staycationers” looking for an invigorating low carbon vacation - will have the opportunity to experience our world class environment as never before. You'll get a chance to see the damage caused by fossil-fuel based recreation and resource extraction first hand and have the satisfaction of reversing it. In addition, local youth residents who are currently leaving the community for lack of things to do will have the opportunity to get involved in the programs, building their job skills for a green career.

While the Aviva funding is one-time, its impact will be huge and last a very long time by supporting the development of Galiano's restorative eco-tourism services, which will generate behaviour change throughout the region as well as the income needed to sustain our education and restoration work year after year.

The funding is needed now to enable us the time and resources to:

1. Develop partnerships and co-create programs with groups in the region
2. Set up the logistics of hosting multiple programs here in the community (food, accomodation)
3. Pay staff who are experts in environmental education and restoration to facilitate programs
4. Develop and test restorative eco-tourism operation (ie. enviro education for paying adults)
5. Build our communications so that people know about and register for both our education programs and the eco-tourism services that will fund them in the future

For more info, photos and videos on our current environmental education programs and restoration work, check out: www.galianoconservancy.ca

If you like what we want to do, you may also want to vote for these folks too at the same time!

Protect Madrona Farm Forever (yeah local food security!)

Environmental Education Program (yeah Sustainable High Schools!)

Engaging Canadian Young People on Climate Action (yeah Youth taking action at the national and international level!)

Building Community Through Understanding and Unity (yeah First Nations reclaiming culture and youth leadership development!)

**Remember, the important thing is to come back and vote everyday, so all the projects you support in our region get to go through. Please get 5 of your friends/family to vote too! Thanks!!