Manitoba

Project Yellow

2022, Selkirk, MB, Canada

Jerzy is a student from Lord Selkirk Regional Comprehensive Secondary School in Selkirk, MB. When she was posed with the question, “What can I do to improve my watershed?”, she was buzzing with ideas!

With Project Yellow, I hoped to improve the state of our watershed’s bee population. In order to do so, I handed out packets of Anise Hyssop seeds; a plant very attractive to pollinators. My workplace gave me permission to hand out a packet with each sale, which helped me give away over 80 of the 100 packets. Whilst explaining my project to customers, they showed a genuine interest in helping. It only took two shifts to clear out the seeds! The rest of the seeds were given to friends and family. I am very pleased with the level of community involvement as it will take one to save our watershed.

The Story of Frog Plains

2022, West Kildonan Collegiate, Winnipeg, MB, Canada
Two girls kneeling down looking at grass
When Breanna and Rae from West Kildonan Collegiate in Winnipeg, MB heard that a protected wetland in their area was not being upkept, they decided they wanted to do something about it! They organized a group of students to go in, pick some weeds and invasive species, and plant some new native species to bring the area back to its former glory!

“We want to help and connect our community by bringing back the beauty that this wetland once was.”
Two girls standing with plants growing in pots
The girls partnered with Edmond Partridge Middle School so that they could educate the next generation and have them help with the project. They also made a partnership with the Aki Learning Centre who donated some plants including Narrow Leaf Sunflower and Purple Prairie Clover. They also got some extra little packages of seeds to give to students to plant elsewhere in the community and spread their project beyond Frog Plains!

Food For All

2022, Lord Selkirk Regional, Selkirk, MB, Canada
Girl standing with contest winner sign
Jenna is a high school student from Selkirk, MB who wanted to do something to reduce food waste in her community. She got permission from her boss at the grocery store she works at to start donating food that cannot be sold in his store rather than throwing it out. They worked together to create a plan to have the food picked up and transferred to the school’s breakfast club. Her project met environmental sustainability needs, but also social ones, as well.

“Even this small call to action may seem small but, in the end, it will make a great impact among the community. Food waste has accumulated so much over the years especially with the pandemic occurring. I feel my solution for such a huge problem is needed greatly in these harsh times.”

This entry was posted in Manitoba, Canada on April 4, 2022 by Holly Pousett.

Informative Watershed Video Game

2021, Winnipeg, MB, Canada

Chinemerem, a student at Miles Macdonell Collegiate in Winnipeg, Manitoba, wanted to create a fun and interactive way to learn about his watershed. He decided to create a video game to help educate students about the Lake Winnipeg Watershed.

“Throughout this journey, I have learned a lot about watersheds, done plenty of research as to what makes a great game, and have remolded my original idea into what it is today.”

This entry was posted in Manitoba, Canada on August 23, 2021 by Chloe Sprecker.

Unmasking the Truth

2021, Winnipeg, MB, Canada

Victoria from West Kildonan Collegiate in Winnipeg, MB noticed the increased amount of personal protective equipment (PPE) waste that was popping up in her community, particularly at her school where masks had become mandatory during the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Single-use plastics are used so often, but not much thought goes into what happens to that plastic once it has served its purpose.”

She noted that the City of Winnipeg had encouraged people to throw disposable masks in the garbage instead of the recycling so that they would not get caught in machinery or pose health risks to recycling employees.

“My proposal works to address this situation and offer a solution that is both sustainable and safe!”

Victoria ordered TerraCycle PPE recycling boxes to have around her school to help safely dispose of used PPE during the pandemic. Even after the pandemic, these boxes will be helpful in science labs around the school. TerraCycle also offers other recycling boxes for items such as art supplies, coffee capsules, and markers which could be utilized by the school, as well.

This entry was posted in Manitoba, Canada on August 23, 2021 by Chloe Sprecker.

A Day in the Life of Netly-Libau Marsh – A Documentary

2021, Winnipeg, MB, Canada

Xavier, a student at Lord Selkirk Regional Comprehensive Secondary School, wanted to create an educational resource to teach Manitoba students about the importance of the Netley-Libau marsh that borders Lake Winnipeg. He decided to create a documentary to not only educate people, but to take them there on a virtual “visit”, as well. This resource can be used by students, teachers, and anyone who wishes to learn more about the importance that this vast wetland holds for the Lake Winnipeg watershed.

“Located at the mouth of the Red River and the south end of Lake Winnipeg in Manitoba, Canada, Netly-Libau Marsh is one of the largest and most important coastal wetlands in North America. This is its story.”

This entry was posted in Manitoba, Canada on August 23, 2021 by Chloe Sprecker.

Switching to Biodegradable Bags

2021, Winnipeg, MB, Canada

When Katelyn from École Seven Oaks Middle School in Winnipeg, MB interviewed students at her school, she found out that many of them pick up their dog’s waste using regular plastic bags. She thought about all the plastic waste that must be thrown in the trash and thought that she could help reduce it by proposing biodegradable dog bags!

“Dog waste and dog bags have a bigger impact on our watersheds than you think.”

She created a virtual presentation about the way that dog waste and plastic dog bags can impact her watershed that her school mates were able to watch online, and then samples of the biodegradable bags were distributed to students with pets at home. Katelyn hopes that these students and their families will make the permanent switch to these eco-friendly bags and encourage others to do so, as well!

This entry was posted in Manitoba, Canada on August 23, 2021 by Chloe Sprecker.

Custom Keyboard

2021, Seven Oaks Met School, Winnipeg, MB, Canada

When you think about sustainability do you think about the keyboard you use at your computer? Chasz from Seven Oaks Met School in Winnipeg, MB did! Chasz created custom-built mechanical keyboards that are longer lasting, more eco-friendly, and more sustainable than their cheaper plastic counterparts!

“With our new world where most of us are at home and may continue to work from home even after the pandemic, a lot of jobs require you to sit at your desk and type for long amounts of time. The keyboard you use can really affect your productivity. Cheaper keyboards do not last long and have a very unenjoyable typing experience. They are also hard to recycle from the consumer standpoint and from the actual recycling of the keyboard (Statista, 2020). Most people who build their keyboards themselves or have them made specifically to their liking have said that they experience better productivity and a better overall mood while typing or working. I think it’s important to keep the mental health of people with desk jobs a very high priority since nearly 40% of the Canadian workforce is working from home and an even bigger number for those working at a desk (Advisors Edge, 2020). This project is greatly affiliated with SDG goal #3 because like I said, I would like to preserve and improve the mental health of those working desk jobs.”

This entry was posted in Manitoba, Canada on April 4, 2021 by Holly Pousett.

Composting for a Cause

2021, West Kildonan Collegiate, Winnipeg, MB, Canada

Have you ever thought about how much food waste is produced by restaurants? Nicholas from West Kildonan Collegiate in Winnipeg, MB came up with an idea to get more restaurants to compost some of their waste to divert it from the landfill and have it turn into something useful! He partnered with a local company called Compost Winnipeg, and they were able to fund restaurants subscriptions with this composting company for a couple of months to get them started in hopes that they would continue recycling afterwards. They also held a successful community recycling event to educate local members of the community on the benefits of compost at home!

“As a community it is our obligation and responsibility to take care of our Watershed so our future descendants, and wildlife alike have a safe, healthy, and nurturing place to enjoy and to depend on for generations. My proposal works to reduce the amount of food waste produced by restaurants in our community, and to divert their food waste away from landfills.”

This entry was posted in Manitoba, Canada on April 4, 2021 by Holly Pousett.

Clean Slate Solutions

2021, Virden Collegiate, Virden, MB, Canada

Jae and Breanna are students from Virden Collegiate in Virden, MB. They saw a need for more garbage and recycling bins at their school, so they had these new ones installed near the student parking lot to give people a place to properly dispose of their waste and keep their community cleaner!

“Picture this, you’re driving through Virden and decide to stop by the high school for a brief visit. You pull into the student parking lot and see a Tim Hortons coffee cup, you look a lile harder and see garbage all throughout, you then look and see the only two garbage cans are located side by side at the entrance of the parking lot. Our proposal is to implement more recycling bins and/or garbage bins within the proximity of the student parking lot to help limit the amount of free lance garbage and start creating a better environment not just for the school, but for the community as well!”

This entry was posted in Manitoba, Canada on April 4, 2021 by Holly Pousett.

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