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Alberta

Beehives and goat farms: Lacombe school shortlisted in global environmental contest

Published

2 years ago

5 minute read

Taylor Perez says she learned more about her passions while tending beehives, goats and fruit trees at her central Alberta high school than sitting through lessons in a classroom.

“These are all skills we don’t learn in regular classes,” says the 18-year-old student at Lacombe Composite High School.

“You’re not going to learn how to collaborate with community members by sitting in a classroom learning about E = mc2.”

Perez and her classmates are buzzing with excitement after their school’s student-led beekeeping program, goat farm, fruit orchard, tropical greenhouse and other environmental projects were recognized in a global sustainability contest among 10 other schools.

It’s the only North American school to be shortlisted by T4 Education, a global advocacy group, in its World’s Best School Prize for Environmental Action contest.

“The projects are coming from the students’ own hearts and passion for taking care of the environment,” says Steven Schultz, an agriculture and environmental science teacher who has been teaching in Lacombe since 1996.

“They are going to be our community leaders — maybe even our politicians — and for them to know what the heartbeat of their generation is (is) extremely important.”

Schultz says the projects are pitched and designed by students in the school’s Ecovision Club, to which Perez belongs, and he then bases a curriculum around those ideas.

The school of about 900 students began reducing its environmental footprint in 2006 when a former student heard Schultz say during a lesson on renewable energy that “words were meaningless or worthless without action,” the 56-year-old teacher recalls.

“She took that to heart and a year later she came back and told me that she wanted to take the school off the grid.”

Schultz and students watched a fire burn down solar panels on the school’s roof in 2010, an event that further transformed his approach to teaching.

“As their school was burning, my students gathered in tears. That day I realized that students really care about the environment and they really care about the projects that they were involved in.”

Since then, 32 new solar panels have been installed, and they produce up to four per cent of the school’s electricity. After the fire, students also wanted to clean the air in their classrooms so they filled some with spider plants, including one in the teachers’ lounge.

More recently, students replaced an old portable classroom on school property with a greenhouse that operates solely with renewable energy. It’s growing tropical fruits, such as bananas, pineapples, and lemons, and also houses some tilapia fish.

Two acres of the school are also covered by a food forest made up of almost 200 fruit trees and 50 raised beds where organic food is grown.

The school also works with a local farm and raises baby goats inside a solar-powered barn that was built with recycled material.

“They breed and milk them at the farm because there are really tight regulations,” says Schultz.

“We take the excrement from the goats and the hay and use it as mulch and fertilizers for our garden. The goats also chew up the grass and allow us not to have to use lawn mowers and tractors”

Perez said her favourite class is the beekeeping program with 12 hives that produce more than 300 kilograms of honey every year.

“I love that they have different roles in their own little societies,” Perez says of the bees.

She says while working with local businesses and groups as a part of her curriculum, she learned she’s passionate about the environment and wants to become a pharmacist so she can continue giving back to her community.

James Finley, a formerly shy Grade 10 student, says the Ecovision Club and environment classes have helped get him out of his comfort zone.

“I made friends, which was a hard thing for me in the beginning. But now I have, like, hundreds,” says the 16-year-old, who enjoyed the lessons he took on harvesting.

“Taylor and Mr. Schultz were the main people that made me stay.”

Schultz says the winners of the contest are to be announced in the fall.

A prize of about $322,000 will be equally shared among five winners.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sunday, July 3, 2022.

—

This story was produced with the financial assistance of the Meta and Canadian Press News Fellowship.

Fakiha Baig, The Canadian Press

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Alberta

Political parties will be part of municipal elections in Edmonton and Calgary pilot projects

Published on April 25, 2024

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Strengthening Alberta’s local elections

Alberta’s government is introducing legislation to ensure Albertans can rely on transparent, free and fair elections, and municipally-elected officials have clearer accountability measures.

In a democratic society, Albertans expect their local elections to be free and fair, and their elected officials to be held to account by clear rules that govern their local councils. The Municipal Affairs Statutes Amendment Act proposes amendments to the Local Authorities Election Act (LAEA) and the Municipal Government Act (MGA) to add greater transparency to local election processes and ensure local councils and elected officials continue to remain accountable to the citizens who elected them.

“Our government is committed to strengthening Albertans’ trust in their local governments and the democratic process that elects local leaders. The changes we are making increase transparency for Alberta voters and provide surety their votes will be counted accurately. We know how important local democracy is to Albertans, and we will work with local authorities to protect and enhance the integrity of local elections.”

Ric McIver, Minister of Municipal Affairs

Local Authorities Election Act

Albertans expect free and fair elections and that’s why it’s important we strengthen the rules that govern local elections. To strengthen public trust in local elections, Alberta’s government will eliminate the use of electronic tabulators and other automated voting machines. All Albertans should be able to trust the methods and results of local elections; requiring all ballots to be counted by hand, clarifying rules and streamlining processes for scrutineers will provide voters greater assurance in the integrity of the results.

All eligible Albertans should be able to vote in local elections without impediment. Alberta’s government will limit the barriers for eligible voters to cast a ballot by expanding the use of special ballots. Currently, special ballots can only be requested for very specific reasons, including physical disability, absence from the municipality, or for municipal election workers. By expanding the use of special ballots, the government is encouraging more voter participation.

Amendments in the Municipal Affairs Statutes Amendment Act would increase transparency in local elections by enabling political parties at the local level. Political parties would be enabled in a pilot project for Edmonton and Calgary. The act will not require candidates to join a political party in order to run for a local or municipal office, but will create the opportunity to do so.

In addition, proposed changes to the Local Authorities Election Act would allow municipalities the option to require criminal record checks for local candidates, thus increasing transparency and trust in candidates who may go on to become elected officials.

Municipal Government Act

The role of an elected official is one with tremendous responsibility and expectations. Changes proposed to the Municipal Government Act (MGA) will strengthen the accountability of locally elected officials and councils. These include requiring mandatory orientation training for councillors, allowing elected officials to recuse themselves for real or perceived conflicts of interest without third-party review and requiring a councillor’s seat to become vacant upon disqualification.

If passed, the Municipal Affairs Statutes Amendment Act will also unlock new tools to build affordable and attainable housing across Alberta. Proposed amendments under the MGA would also create more options for municipalities to accelerate housing developments in their communities. Options include:

  • Exempting non-profit, subsidized affordable housing from both municipal and education property taxes;
  • Requiring municipalities to offer digital participation for public hearings about planning and development, and restricting municipalities from holding extra public hearings that are not already required by legislation; and
  • Enabling municipalities to offer multi-year residential property tax exemptions.

Municipal Affairs will engage municipalities and other partners over the coming months to hear perspectives and gather feedback to help develop regulations.

Quick facts

  • The LAEA establishes the framework for the conduct of elections in Alberta municipalities, school divisions, irrigation districts and Metis Settlements.
  • The MGA establishes the rules governing the conduct of local elected officials once on council, as well as the overall administration and operation of municipal authorities in Alberta, including any policy those authorities may wish to implement.

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Alberta

Alberta official reveals ‘almost all’ wildfires in province this year have been started by humans

Published on April 25, 2024

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From LifeSiteNews

By Clare Marie Merkowsky

Alberta Minister of Forestry and Parks Todd Loewen said his department estimates that most of the province’s wildfires this year are man-made and not caused by ‘climate change.’

Alberta officials have announced that almost all fires in 2024 are believed to have been caused by humans despite ongoing claims that “climate change” is to blame.

On April 24, Alberta Minister of Forestry and Parks Todd Loewen revealed that his department estimates that most of the province’s wildfires this year are man-made and not caused by “climate change” as claimed by mainstream media and politicians.

“We expect that almost all of the wildfires we’ve experienced so far this year are human caused, given the point we’re at in the season and the types of weather we’re seeing,” Loewen stated.

 Already, Alberta has put out 172 wildfires this year, and 63 are actively burning. However, Loewen did not seem overly alarmed, instead warning Albertans to watch their local fire bans and restrictions to reduce the high number of man-made wildfires.  

“I urge you to assess your property for wildfire danger and take any preventive action you can to address these risks,” he said.

“This includes breaking up fuel sources that could ignite a structure, removing trees in close proximity to your home, and properly maintaining your gutters and roofs to rid the materials that could easily ignite such as leaves and dry needles,” Loewen added.

Loewen’s announcement comes just weeks after Alberta Premier Danielle Smith promised that arsonists who ignite wildfires in Alberta will be held accountable for their crimes.

“As we approach the wildfire season, it is important to understand that 67% of wildfires in Alberta are started by people,” she explained.

“If you start a wildfire, you can be charged, fined, and held liable for all costs associated with fighting the wildfire,” Smith added.

“All I know is in my province we have 650 fires and 500 of them were human caused,” she said, “so we have to make sure that when people know that when it’s dry out there and we get into forest fire season that they’re being a lot more careful because anytime you end up with an ignition that happens it can have devastating consequences.”

The Alberta government has also created an ad campaign highlighting the fact that most fires are caused by humans and not “climate change,” as many left-leaning politicians claim.

As reported by LifeSiteNews last year, Smith ordered arson investigators to look into why some of the wildfires that raged across the vast expanse of the province had “no known cause” shortly after they spread.

Indeed, despite claims that wildfires have drastically increased due to “climate change,” 2023 research revealed that wildfires have decreased globally while media coverage has spiked 400 percent.

Furthermore, many of the fires last spring and summer were discovered to be caused by arsonists and not “climate change.”

Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) have arrested arsonists who have been charged with lighting fires across the country, including in the Yukon, British Columbia, and Alberta.

In Quebec, satellite footage also showed the mysterious simultaneous eruption of several blazes across the province, sparking concerns that the fires were a coordinated effort by arsonists.

Despite the overwhelming evidence, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and mainstream media continue to claim that the fires are unprecedentedly dangerous and caused by “climate change” in an attempt to pass further regulations on natural resources.

The reduction and eventual elimination of the use of so-called “fossil fuels” and a transition to unreliable “green” energy has also been pushed by the World Economic Forum (WEF) – the globalist group behind the socialist “Great Reset” agenda – an organization with which Trudeau and some in his cabinet are involved.

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