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Local education charity wins national award
The Columbia Basin Environmental Education Network – or CBEEN as it is affectionately known – was awarded the highest prize for an organization of its type at the national environmental education awards ceremony recently.
CBEEN was named ‘Outstanding Environmental Education Membership Organization’ by the Canadian Network for Environmental Education and Communication (EECOM) at its national conference which took place recently in Victoria.
Celebrating its 10 years of service, CBEEN was established with the aim of building a community of engaged and effective educators by connecting them with the best resources, information, delivery and networking opportunities available.
CBEEN’s Executive Director Duncan Whittick, who received the award on the organization’s behalf said, “I believe this award is a testament to the incredible efforts put forward by countless volunteers, staff, partners, funders and members over the past decade. I also think it is a wonderful launching pad for CBEEN to become an even stronger umbrella network that plays a role in strengthening environmental education for all residents of the Columbia Basin.”
Incorporated as a non-profit in 2003, CBEEN has since grown from a small group of passionate educators to a vibrant network of more than 400 educators from across the Columbia Basin and beyond. Currently CBEEN is the only organization acting as an umbrella network for environmental education across the Canadian Columbia Basin; a region internationally recognized for its biodiversity values.
Since taking over the Wild Voices for Kids program in 2009, CBEEN has made it possible for over 40,000 students to take part field trips and presentations across six school districts. CBEEN has also coordinated numerous opportunities for teachers such as their popular Voices for Sustainability Symposium and hosting of Dr. Jane Goodall on her debut visit to the Kootenays in 2012.
To capitalize on this momentum, CBEEN will be presenting an Environmental Education Showcase at the Radium Resort from 3 – 5 p.m. on Friday, September 20, which the public is invited to attend.
CBEEN is also working in partnership with its national counterpart to host a Leadership Clinic in the Kootenays in the spring of 2014 and has put forward its intention to bid to host the 2017 National Annual Environmental Education Conference, which would bring hundreds of practitioners and researchers to the region.
To find out more about CBEEN, please visit www.cbeen.org or email [email protected].
Above photo: CBEEN Executive Director Duncan Whittick (right holding award) and CBEEN volunteer Monica Nissen (left holding award) pose with directors of the Canadian Network for Environmental Education and Communication (EECOM) who presented the award.
