CLSS' Young Stewards promote conservation
By Contributor
The Christina Lake Stewardship Society’s Young Stewards of the Boundary Youth Program has been successful in encouraging children and their caregivers to do their part to keep our lake clean. The Society strives to promote environmental conservation through education and connections to the ecosystems around them, which occurs every Thursday morning throughout the summer in their Interpretive Gallery.
Each one of these sessions begins with a presentation on the big screen pertaining to a different theme from “Beautiful Birds” to “Fun in the Forest”, followed by a walk in the Nature Park, or an outdoor activity. The last part of the day includes cut-out painting for the “Wildlife Walk of Fame” that began during the Homecoming celebrations last year. The fence by the baseball field at the Community Hall is almost filled with local critters cut out of coroplast by Leo and Mary Sitter, and painted by the young artists of the community. While half of the kids paint, the other half of the group does animal track casting. The Society has a myriad of different polymer molds that the children get to pour their plaster mixture into, and when they pop out their track they get to see the imprint these animals leave behind.
These polymer molds were purchased last year thanks to a grant from the Phoenix Foundation of the Boundary Communities, and they have also provided a grant to the Society this year for the purchase of Wildlife Cameras, and waders to get into important wetlands. These cameras are able to catch the wildlife (such as elk, deer, and foxes) in our own backyard without being disturbed by humans.
This footage has been incorporated into the Youth Program, so that the children get to see what life is like in nature without our prying eyes. A video is also being shown on their Facebook page, YouTube Channel, and website blog (lakesteward.ca), if you want to see some of these animals for yourself. The Society believes that once we have an appreciation for the living things within our watershed, we are more likely to protect these resources for future generations.
Bring your little ones down to the Society’s Interpretive Gallery, and pop in to chat with their staff about all that the Christina Lake Watershed has to offer.
This program would not be possible without the generous support of the Phoenix Foundation of the Boundary Communities, the Government of Canada, the Government of BC, RDKB, and donations from members. The CLSS would like to thank these groups for supporting the Young Stewards of the Boundary Youth Program. If you have any questions, comments, or you want to be a part of this program, you can contact the Christina Lake Stewardship Society at 250-447-2504 or clss@nethop.net
