OCDSB Information

Welcome to the OCDSB EarthCARE Information section. This section contains stories, news, and information about the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board's EarthCARE program. Check out the stories from your schools. Get information about EarthCARE events and activities on your EarthCARE Calendar. Track your progress in LOCO and other conservation activities via the audit results. If you have tips, activities, or lessons to share, send them to , and we will post them here in your EarthCARE website section.

Latest Updates

April 20, 2008 - The Ontario Society for Environmental Education’s annual conference is being held at beautiful Bark Lake, May 2 - 4 2008. Conference topics include climate change and classrooms, greening schools, First Nations perspectives, ideas for DPA, and many more. Visit www.osee.org for details or download a PDF of the conference flyer.

April 20, 2008 - Schools boast $5 million savings by going LOCO - EarthCARE in the OCDSB featured in the Saturday, March 29, 2008 edition of the Ottawa Sun, view a PDF of the article.

April 17, 2008 - Emily Carr Middle School students involved in several successful initiatives to promote EarthCARE in their school and community.

March 21, 2008 - Looking for some help with your schools EarthCARE audit? Take a look at the Completing Your EarthCARE Audit brochure (PDF), which outlines the audit's 5 main steps.

March 21 2008 - The annual Ottawa EarthCARE EXPO is on May 8, 2008, from 11:00am - 1:00pm at Confederation High School, 1645 Woodroffe Ave., Nepean, Ontario. Everyone is welcome to attend, participating students are encouraged to take part in the 2008 Expo challenges. You can also download a printable PDF of the Expo poster.

March 21, 2008 - Simon Jackson, founder and chairman of Spirit Bear Youth Coalition - one of the world's largest youth-run environmental organizations to deliver the keynote address at the annual Ottawa EarthCARE EXPO to be held on May 8, 2008.

March 21, 2008 - The annual Ottawa EarthCARE EXPO is on May 8, 2008, from 11:00am - 1:00pm at Confederation High School, 1645 Woodroffe Ave., Nepean, Ontario. Everyone is welcome to attend, participating students are encouraged to take part in the 2008 Expo challenges.

March 7, 2008 - Led by Christine Dazé, the EarthCARE team at Richmond Public School is busy being environmental stewards in their school.

February 10, 2008 - The greening of Adrienne Clarkson Elementary School continues to be a huge success due to the ownership that students have taken in the project.

February 10, 2008 - Alison Sinclair, a teacher at Jockvale PS and parent volunteer Lana Lotan bring us a great way to use those weekly pizza boxes headed to the recycling bin. Head to the Lessons and Activities page and have a look at the Pizza Box Dragons activity.

December 26, 2007 - Nancy Clue's class at Vincent Massey PS putting vermicomposters to good use!

December 26, 2007 - Colonel By's FROGGs group heightening awareness, reducing the amount of garbage going to the landfill and showing how little effort it takes to create a greener earth.

December 26, 2007 - Glebe's TWIGS group providing waste reduction and conservation instructions to new students and monitoring the contents of their school's recycling bins.

December 26, 2007 - The BEAT (Be Environmentally Active Today) Club along with their mascot, Junky Jr., are busy helping their fellow Jockvale ES students reduce waste and conserve energy.

December 26, 2007 - Glebe students and staff bring in litterless lunches as part of Waste Reduction Week in Canada, October 15 - 19.

December 26, 2007 - At EarthCARE's fall training session for elementary Team Leaders, Tasha Bridgen from Earth Day Ottawa launched their pilot project to place 20 vermicomposters into elementary classrooms during the 2007-2008 school year.

December 26, 2007 - TWIGS helps make Glebe's Walk or Bike to School Week a great success!

November 5 2007 - Katimavik Elementary School, Principal Diane Powell and students welcomed Mayor Larry O'Brien for the official launch of Ottawa's RETHINK GARBAGE Campaign.

November 5 2007 - Download a PDF of the 2006-2007 OCDSB EarthCARE Year-End Report from Executive Director, Rose-Marie Batley.

November 5 2007 - The eco-quizzes and a list of the URLs discussed at the fall 2007 in-service have been added to the Lessons and Activities page.

November 3 2007 - The audit results are in! EarthCARE saved the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board $1,791,542 in the 06/07 school year - view a complete summary of the 06/07 audit results.

October 22 2007 - The Richard Pfaff EarthCARE team is currently raising money towards a scholarship fund for high school students in the Dadaab refugee camp in Kenya.

October 22 2007 - Thank you to all who attended the OCDSB EarthCARE Fall In-service October 11 & 12, 2007. Learn more about this exciting event.

October 1 2007 - The 07/08 OCDSB EarthCARE calendar is now online. Take a look, and see what we have planned for the year.

September 25 2007 - WIAM (World Inter-Action Mondiale) presents, The One World Film Festival, October 10 to 20. Ten days of internationally produced documentaries about contemporary world issues. Plus food, music, entertainment and more. At the Library and Archives Canada, 395 Wellington St, The Odawa Native Friendship Centre, 12 Stirling Ave, and the SAW Gallery, 67 Nicholas St. To learn more, visit http://wiam.ca/programs/one-world-film-festival/.

July 23 2007 - Based on the 2007 audits, the EarthCARE scoreboards for the OCDSB and the HPEDSB are now available. From a participatory and an economic perspective, the scoreboards illustrate the tremendous success that both boards have had with EarthCARE.

June 22 2007 - On May 3 2007, over 200 people attended the EarthCARE Expo including students, parents, staff, sponsors, members of the community and Minister of Environment, The Honourable John Baird. Thank you to all those who attended and helped to make the 2007 EarthCARE Expo such a tremendous success.

June 21 2007 - Join the TD Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup, a national conservation initiative that allows all Canadians to have a positive impact on their local environment. For more information visit www.vanaqua.org/cleanup/home.php.

June 21 2007 - A parade and an assembly promote environmental awareness and conservation at Lady Evelyne P.S.'s Earth Day celebrations.

June 21 2007 - A fun-filled half-day of learning and games raises environmental awareness at Dunlop P.S.

June 19 2007 - May's EarthCARE newsletter from Terry Fox ES - newsletters like this one keep parents and the community informed about the school's EarthCARE activities.

June 13 2007 - An important message from the Monarch Teacher Network-Canada including details on the Summer 2007 'Teaching and Learning with Monarch Butterflies' workshops.

June 13 2007 - A summary of this year's EarthCARE events from Glebe's Great EarthCARE Team, TWIGS.

June 12 2007 - By promoting environmental awareness, encouraging litterless lunches, and participating in the ECO-Stewardship Fair, Castlefrank has made an outstanding effort in respecting the environment during this school year.

June 7 2007 - A successful composting program is one of the many EarthCARE initiatives underway at Vincent Massey Public School.

June 7 2007 - The Planet (Save It), an environmentally conscious approach to hip-hop from C.J., a student at Frederick Banting Alternative Program.

May 12 & 13 2007 - The Green Energy & Transportation Show, Lansdowne Park, Ottawa. The Green Energy & Transportation, one of Canada's first "Green" focused consumer shows, aims to make a difference by showcasing the latest green products, services and energy saving technologies to consumers. Learn more about the Green Energy & Transportation Show.

May 2 2007 - With their "Think Global, Act Local" tree and a very successful battery drive, students at Terry Fox ES are certainly heavily involved with EarthCARE.

May 2 2007 - By creating their robotic classmate, Megamo, the grade 5 students of Katimavik Elementary School learned that many items can be reused in a new form rather than being discarded.

May 2 2007 - Led by their teacher, Mme. Christina Organisto-Martin, the students of Greenbank Middle School's grade 7 French immersion class have taken on a number of environmentally conscious initiatives including making and selling recyclable cloth bags.

April 26 2007 - Earth Day Celebrations kicked off early Friday morning at R. Byrns Curry School with a "Walking School Bus" driven by Ottawa's new police chief, Vern White.

April 20 2007 - An EarthCARE update and PowerPoint presentation from Brandon, a grade 7 student at Terry Fox Elementary School in Orleans, Ontario.

April 20 2007 - An open letter from the students of Frederick Banting Alternate Site and some ideas to stop climate change and save the environment from the Word Wall.

April 10 2007 - Check out the latest addition to our Lessons, Activities, and Handouts page, a worksheet to accompany the film, "Blackgold" - a documentary about the coffee industry. Thanks to Lea Doxey-Allin, a teacher at Frederick Banting Secondary Alternate Program in Stittsville, Ontario for developing this worksheet.

April 10 2007 - Hydro Ottawa recognizes students efforts to save energy through recycling program.

April 8 2007 - Transforming and greening the school, recycling, waste reduction, energy conservation and more - a great year with EarthCARE and Adrienne Clarkson Elementary School.

April 8 2007 - A PDF version of the EarthCARE quiz from the spring in-service is now available online.

April 7 2007 - Janet Perry's science class at Frederick Banting Alternate Site, helping out Emily, the monarch butterfly and learning to become stewards in protecting the health of our planet.

March 17 2007 - "Walden: The Ballad of Thoreau" is a theatrical play about the last two days Henry David Thoreau spent in his cabin at Walden Pond. This two-act, one-set, four-character play is designed for use by high schools and colleges. The script and play materials plus a customized lesson plan are available FREE to schools in the USA and Canada. Learn more in this PDF summary.

March 9 2007 - Rockcliffe Park Public School's EarthCARE Team has taken on a mission - stop idling cars at their school!

February 18 2007 - Check out the latest addition to our Focus on Books section, a lesson plan based on Michael Martchenko's Ma, I'm a Farmer.

February 12 2007 - Parkwood Hills Public School hosted Terry Newcombe and Geoff MacKay from the Sierra Club to help staff and students learn to reduce, reuse and recycle their lunch time garbage.

February 12 2007 - Evergreen Workshop Series, February to May 2007 (PDF). Join us for a series of exciting greening workshops this spring. The workshops are open to all Ottawa schools and daycares that want to engage their students in the creation of healthy, stimulating outdoor spaces - right on their own school ground! Teachers, administrators, parents, custodians, students and community volunteers are all welcome.

All workshops run from 7–9pm and are held at the Ottawa Technical Learning Centre, 485 Donald Street—Library Resource Centre.

January 25 2007 - Students at Frederick Banting Alternate School in Stittsville recently held their 3rd annual Banting Bargain Barn for the Holiday Season. The Bargain Barn has been a way of recycling items that students and staff no longer use and, at the same time, helping those in need.

January 25 2007 - Carleton University student, Gabriel Wildgen discusses the importance of solid waste diversion and what various groups, including EarthCARE, are doing to help reduce the amount of solid waste that ends up in our land fills.

January 7 2007 - Students from 40 Ottawa-Carleton schools participate in Hydro Ottawa's innovative LED Exchange program. This yielded 48,000 kWh savings and prevented 13.4 kilograms of CO₂ from entering the atmosphere.

January 2 2007 - McGregor Easson Public School in Ottawa, Ontario recognized as an official Green School.

January 2 2007 - OCDSB utility data for 2005 are now available on the EarthCARE Canada website.

December 22 2006 - EarthCARE is going strong at Robert E. Wilson Public School!

December 22 2006 - An update from EarthCARE coordinator, Judy Turriff on the tremendous success that EarthCARE is having at participating Ottawa-Carleton schools.

November 22 2006 - Check out the Lessons, Activities, and Handouts section and download "Do You Know?" - a list of 10 questions and answers that illustrate the importance of waste reduction and water conservation. Thanks to Judy Turriff for putting this handout together.

November 21 2006 - Do you know a young environmentalist aged 8-16 who deserves to be recognized with a cash prize? A young person you know could be next year’s Eco-Hero! Action For Nature is currently accepting applications for the 2007 Award! APPLICATION DEADLINE: February 28, 2007 - read award guidelines and application details

October 4 2006 - The 2006/2007 calendar of EarthCARE events is now online, take a look at the variety of exciting events planned for 06/07.

October 3 2006 - Audit data shows that the OCDSB saved $1,247,147 in 05/06 with EarthCARE - view 05/06 audit results.

September 25 2006 - Recognizing outstanding conservation efforts at the OCDSB. Ameresco Canada and the OCDSB received a Certificate of Recognition for outstanding achievements in energy conservation at the Board's offices on September 12, thanks to its participation in the Better Schools Partnership®(BSP) program. The Board is saving over $5 million annually on energy costs through the BSP.

September 21 2006 - Read a summary of the information shared at the March 27 - 31, 2006 in-services for EarthCARE Teams in the OCDSB. The involvement in and successes of EarthCARE actions are very impressive - congratulations to all.

July 6 2006 - Download "Spring 2006 OCDSB BSP Success Story," a newsletter produced by Ameresco Canada that outlines that tremendous success that both the Better Schools Partnership (BSP) and EarthCARE have had in the OCDSB. A BSP Success Story - PDF 9 MB.

June 13 2006 - The work of Alta Vista P.S.'s Jam Jar Poets is helping those effected by the tsunami in South-East Asia.

June 1 2006 - The students at Ottawa Technical Learning Centre have won the sculpture contest at the EarthCARE Expo for a third consecutive time.

May 27 2006 - OCDSB facilities managers proud to be a part of EarthCARE.

May 27 2006 - Did you make an Earth Day Resolution? The students at the Ottawa Technical Learning Centre did.

May 27 2006 - Ralph Regimbald, Chief Custodian at The Ottawa Technical Learning Centre, wins the Green Feather Award for his environmental contributions.

May 27 2006 - EarthCARE students and parents create a garden at Rockcliffe Park Public School in Ottawa.

May 21 2006 - Anna Bowles, Principal of Continuing Education and Rose-Marie Batley, Executive Director of EarthCARE, help continuing education to participate in the spring 2006 EarthCARE Audit.

May 20 2006 - Planting evergreen seedlings, recycling used computer printer cartridges, and supporting worthy causes abroad - after 2 years at Frederick Banting Alternate Site, EarthCARE continues to make a difference.

May 20 2006 - Visit the Student Arts section and read the latest addition, The Rivers Flow, a poem by Linnath a student at Frederick Banting Alternate Site.

May 16 2006
Check out the latest updates to the Resources section, the “Get in the Loop” teaching kit, provides a fun, hands-on way to help students learn about the 3Rs: Reduce, Reuse and Recycle; and the “Happy Earth Day” activities book, lists a number of things everyone can do to help take care of the earth.

April 30 2006
Learn all about "Helpy Environment" and the rest of Riverview Alternate School's EarthCARE initiatives.

April 27 2006
Energy efficiency, waste reduction, water conservation: a summary of 2005/2006 OCDSB EarthCARE activities taken from the March 27 - 31 in-services for EarthCARE Teams.

April 23 2006
Litterless lunches, battery collection, waste reduction and more - an update from the Greenbank M.S. EarthCARE Team Leader.

April 23 2006
The Greenbank M.S. EarthCARE Club promotes environmentally friendly habits and practices at school and at home.

April 23 2006
EarthCARE Team Leader, Gary O'Brien’s article, “To Idle or Not to Idle, An Environmental Question” offers a number of important facts on the negative impact of vehicle idling.

April 23 2006
Check out the latest addition to our Environmental Lessons, Activities & Handouts page, "What Can We All Do?" a one-page handout listing various ways that we can all help reduce energy consumption and cut emissions.

April 21 2006
EcoAction Teams, a program of Earth Day Canada, cordially invites you to attend a Climate Change event that will be taking place Friday, April 21st, 2006 at the RA Centre in Ottawa (2451 Riverside Drive, Courtside Salon A) from 7:00-9:00 pm. Community leaders, businesses and residents of Ottawa will be coming together to discuss the broader challenges of climate change and to introduce tangible solutions already available and easily implemented at the household level. For information or to register, contact Laura Anderson at 1-888-283-2784 ext 106 or email info@ecoactionteams.ca. Space is limited.

April 20 2006 - EarthCARE students and staff at Glebe Collegiate contribute to the conservation of B.C.'s Great Bear Rainforest.

April 20 2006 - A fund raising update from Roz, a grade 9 student at Glebe Collegiate.

April 20 2006 - Glebe Collegiate’s TWIGS EarthCARE team raise money and support outdoor education while contributing to waste reduction.

April 20 2006 - Thanks to the Glebe TWIGS team, teachers, staff and parents who helped make the April 3-4 EarthCARE Audit a success.

April 20 2006 - Stephan, a student at Glebe Collegiate, explains what his school's environmental group, TWIGS, plans to do with their portion of the money paid to them through the EarthCARE Gain Sharing Program.

April 16 2006 - An update from Stittsville Public School on the tremendous success of their Recycling at Home program.

April 16 2006 - Check out the Student Arts section of the EarthCARE website, you'll find 4 environmentally themed songs submitted by OCDSB students, be sure to check back often as we'll be adding new content as it arrives.

April 15 2006 - OCDSB Partners with Evergreen, a national non-profit environmental organization.

April 15 2006 - Visit our new Letters to the Web Master page and tell us what's on your mind.

April 14 2006 - Julia, a student at Briargreen P.S., writes about what she, and the rest of her EarthCARE team, have been doing to make the program a success in their school.

April 14 2006 - Watch a video clip on LOCO (Light Off Computers Off) made by students at Cedarview MS in Nepean, Ontario with their teacher, Monique Sacks. It's great for a LOCO reminder if your school uses video announcements. (Quicktime Required)

March 5 2006 - Staff from the OCDSB Outdoor Education Centre and the Bill Mason Centre to participate in the upcoming EarthCARE Team Training session, March 27-31.

March 5 2006 - A raffle at Jack Donohue P.S. shows their EarthCARE team's unique and effective commitment to the "3 Rs".

March 5 2006 - Jack Donohue Public School has special Garden Helpers!.

March 5 2006 - Teachers at Jack Donohue Public School incorporating recycled materials into their curriculum.

March 4 2006 - Planning for the 2006 EarthCARE Expo continues. The planning team welcomes its latest members, Francesca and Malorie, two students from West Carleton. Both the competition criteria and the judging criteria are now available online.

March 3 2006 - The OCDSB's 3rd annual EarthCARE EXPO will include competitions for environmental sculpture and innovation, cartoon, still photography, and poetry. For more information, see competition rules.

February 24 2006 - The 2006 EarthCARE Expo is set for May 2, 4:00pm-7:00pm at Confederation High School in Ottawa, the planning committee have been working hard to make this the most successful Expo yet

February 24 2006 - Sir Guy Carleton S.S. social science teacher, Derek Heffernan, engages his students in an assignment to calculate their ecological footprint.

February 17 2006 - Learn about Elizabeth Wyn Wood Secondary Alternate Program's festive door decorating with recycled and re-used products.

February 17 2006 - With the help of EarthCARE, respect for the environment has become an integral part of the program at Sir Guy Carleton.

February 13 2006 - An EarthCARE Update from Terry Fox Elementary School in Orleans, Ontario.

February 5 2006 - The EarthCARE team at Charles Hulse School, in the Alta Vista area of Ottawa, is undertaking a variety of successful environmentally concerned initiatives both at home and abroad.

February 5 2006 - Trillium Elementary School: Composting - A Success Story.

November 10 2005 - OCDSB EarthCARE team leaders meet to review 04/05 success and plan for 05/06.

November 10 2005 - Learn more about OCDSB EarthCARE Project Coordinator Judy Turriff in our new Meet the Coordinator section.

November 4 2005 - "The Recycling Maniacs," a recycling themed play written by Meadowlands PS teacher, Anne Sproule, has been added to the Lessons and Activities section. This play is an excellent teaching resource and is available for download as a PDF of as a Word file.

October 21 2005 - An update from Stittsville Public School, where this fall, 500 EarthCARE students, from grades 1 to 5, will participate in the Recycling at Home program.

July 8 2005 - Highlights from Hilson Public School's EarthCARE Activities

July 7 2005 - Richard Pfaff Secondary Alternate Program's 04/05 EarthCARE Team Achievements

June 15 2005 - Bayshore P.S. EarthCARE Students Develop ?Recycling Feedback Cards?

May 28 2005 - View a new gallery of photos from the Second Annual EarthCARE Expo held May 6 at Confederation High School, Nepean, Ontario. Missed the first batch? Take a look now.

May 24 2005 - View the March 2005 OCDSB EarthCARE audit results and a chart comparing the 2004 and the 2005 data.

May 18 2005, 6:30pm - 8:45pm - EarthCARE students from Sir Wilfrid Laurier S.S. team up with the Raincoast Conservation Society to present Art for the Earth. There will be music, beverages and door prizes, as well as many fabulous artworks and crafts donated by local artists and art students from Sir Wilfrid Laurier S.S.

All proceeds will be donated to the Raincoast Conservation Society to help conserve the Great Bear Rainforest (one of the largest contiguous tracts of temperate rainforest left in the world) in British Columbia. The event will be taking place at Sir Wilfrid Laurier S.S. on 1515 Tenth Line Rd. Tickets are $2 and can be purchased at the door.

May 6 2005 - The second annual EarthCARE Expo was a great success. Thank you to all those who attended and participated, we look forward to seeing you next year. View an assortment of pictures from the event

April 30 2005 - Students at Ridgemont HS Receive Canadian Wildlife Federation Youth Award for Excellence in Environmental Conservation

April 21 2005 - Four local school boards in the Ottawa area have contracted with Goulbourn-Stittsville Sanitation to improve their recycling program

April 21 2005 - EarthCARE Team members Jennifer Teague, Kayleigh McEwan, and Sophie Vesque at Merivale P.S. sharing an important message about the three Rs

March 22 2005 - The students at Frederick Banting Alternate site have been hard at work to raise environmental awareness in their school and community

March 13 2005 - A group of students from Emily Carr Middle School (ECMS) has accepted a unique challenge. They meet every Thursday after school to work on developing a solar car.

Feb 24 2005 - Litterless lunch everyday in Rhonda Birenbaum's grade 2/3 Gifted students at Mutchmor Public School

Feb 18 2005 - Update from Trillium E.S. on their EarthCARE program's Environmental Action Representatives (EARS) activities

Feb 6 2005 - October 2004 EarthCARE Audit Stats for the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board

Jan 30 2005 - John Todd's grade 5 class at Stittsville Public School has not had any metal or plastic in their garbage or recycling bins since Septemeber 2004

Jan 16 2005 - News about the Richard Pfaff Secondary Alternate Program's EarthCARE Team

Dec 12 2004 - Amphibian Conservation Club Receives CWF Youth Conservation Award

Nov 30 2004 - "The world is an Apple" is an exercise that compares the world to an apple. It helps students understand the small amount of land that we depend upon, and how important it is to protect what is left. Download it as a PDF or a Microsoft Word file

Nov 10 2004 - EarthCARE tips poster produced by Osgoode Public School available for download as a PDF or Microsoft Word file

Nov 1 2004 - Interpreting the EarthCARE Facility Audit

Oct 23 2004 - OCDSB EarthCARE Scoreboard

Oct 23 2004 - Summary of EarthCARE Report 2003/2004