Aurora College just announced that they have acquired about $1.5 M million in funding from the federal government for a new outreach program focused on raising climate awareness among youth and educators. Aurora College is among 17 recipients across the country selected to receive the funding.
Chris Paci, vice-president of research at the Aurora Research Institute, told True North FM that the project is focused on delivering participatory, place-based programming about climate change, where the climate is changing at rapid rates up to four times faster than the global average.
The funding was awarded through the Climate Action and Awareness Fund, part of a federal government environmental fund.
Aurora College’s research institute will deliver climate change educational workshops in partnership with educators and community organizations through the Aurora Research Institute’s STEM Outreach team.
The college’s project, called the Building Climate Change Awareness and Environmental Literacy in NWT Youth Project, will continue into 2029.
Paci said that the research team at the institute was “thrilled” upon learning of their successful bid.
“There was quite a lot of interest in the research dollars and then the capacity building dollars and so we were fortunate to capture some here for the Northwest Territories.”
The funding will go to each of the college’s outreach centres located in Inuvik, Fort Smith and Yellowknife.
“We’ll be hiring coordinators to help us work with our STEM Outreach team to build resources for teachers in the classroom, as well as to do workshops in the communities. So, our STEM Outreach team works with the K to 12 students, as well as with some of the summer camps and other programs that are out and around. And we offer workshops and education opportunities. And so, on the climate change front, we’ll be hiring special coordinators to do that work and help build those resources,” explained Paci.
The research team is hoping that following the five years of funding, those resources will remain available to teachers, to students and to youth.
“Literacy is always really important and on climate change, it’s even more so because what we’re experiencing here in the Northwest Territories is pretty significant when it comes to the impacts of climate change and being able to have the ability to talk about it. And think about adaptations and things we can do to better prepare for some of the impacts is essential,” emphasized Paci.
The research being done at Aurora College is applied research, so the workshops will be focused on first hand learning.
“It isn’t just research for the sake of research,” said Paci. “It’s research that has value to the communities, that’s going to improve people’s lives. Certainly, for the STEM research our goal is to have some practical, real-life, opportunities, experiences and practicalities.”
