EarthCARE Program Components

The environmental education program program is delivered as a joint endeavour at all levels through a co-design process. When everyone does a little, a lot can be accomplished.

1. Project Partnership System
2. In-School Program
3. Building Operators Training Program
4. Incentive & Recognition Program
5. Quality Assurance Plan
6. Communications Plan

Project Partnership System

Successful enrollment of parties in the delivery of EarthCARE relies on the Project Partnership System as delivered through the project management. Project plans will be customized for the Board and the program will be co-managed year over year, to ensure program quality and results. Project management support is available along with support for training in the youth engagement and custodial engagement strategies. In-services and monitoring mechanisms are developed for delivery in your Board.

The Project Partnership System component is critical; it supports the delivery of EarthCARE and helps to ensure success in the Board. A robust framework for developing and managing partnerships among senior staff, facilities staff, school staff and students that creates new value and a lasting impact is provided. The project management of EarthCARE helps to ensure results. The program is delivered as a joint endeavour at all levels through a co-design process. When everyone does a little, a lot can be accomplished. EarthCARE relies on participants working together, in partnerships, for a better outcome.

In-School Program

This program provides lessons and activities for all grade levels, adds value to curriculum, helps teachers by providing learning resources, and promotes the desired conservation behaviours to make the program self-funding. The in-school component contains classroom and school-wide activities. Activities and lesson plans are linked to curriculum expectations. Activities are consistent with the partnership delivery model and involve the School Council and/or parents in EarthCARE teams or in the program.

View a selection of sample EarthCARE lessons and activities.

Building Operators Training Program

This is a program that increases the ability of facilities staff to add energy savings, which in turn will contribute to the funding of the program. The program focuses on training in techniques for custodial and maintenance staff that enable them to operate their buildings more efficiently. Training is provided at both an awareness level (energy consumption facts) and operation level (e.g., building automation systems, thermostat controls, compressors and pneumatic systems, etc.).

Visit the Building Operators Training Program section to view samples from this program.

Incentive & Recognition Plan

An incentive and recognition plan that inspires and encourages students and staff to move from the participation level to the action is included in the EarthCARE program. The recognition component is included in the Communications Plan as well. Incentives and recognition are available for teachers, students, custodians and families of schools. Rewards are based on the degree of participation in the schools as measured through the Quality Assurance component. The goal is to have the schools see the difference they are making and to share the resulting savings with the district. An EarthCARE Kit containing various articles will be made available to each participating school for use in recognizing achievements in their school.

Quality Assurance Plan

A comprehensive quality assurance plan is provided with the EarthCARE program to ensure program quality, alignment with curriculum, and transition from awareness to action. The measurement of participation in energy conservation activities is directly tied to the incentive and recognition plans. The objectives are to:

• Demonstrate the effectiveness of the activities to the district; and
• Encourage sharing of the resulting savings among participating schools

The QA measures address the effectiveness of implementation of the program. As well the success of all aspects of EarthCARE in a given board can be assessed providing robust data for decision-making regarding changes or improvements.

Communications Plan

In keeping with the Better Schools Partnership model, the communications component helps to create marketing leverage while providing a positive image for the Board. Through our multimedia approach we recognize students and staff in EarthCARE success stories creating opportunities to showcase their endeavours and their learning. A customized communication plan is created in conjunction with the board, including web site support to facilitate the delivery of learning resources and communicate results. Web site resources can be intranet or Internet and a board can be linked to the Better Schools Partnership site as well. A predetermined communication budget will be sponsored by Ameresco Canada to support this vital component.

Critical Delivery Elements of EarthCARE

• Youth Engagement
• Custodial Engagement
• Project Partnership System

The EarthCARE program can be customized in all of its components to suit a given board. However, there are critical elements about the program that must be retained; they are the essence of the success of the program and its distinguishing feature.