The Biosphère invites teachers from across the country to enjoy a stimulating learning experience with their students! 

Free videoconferences and interactive presentations are available to secondary schools across Canada. These presentations and videoconferences, given in English or French by the Biosphère’s professional educators, encourage young people to be more proactive about the environment, while combining cognitive, sensory and emotional learning.

One-hour presentations are available to students aged 12 and older on 5 themes: climate change, responsible consumption, biodiversity, air quality and pollution, and water. Each presentation begins with a provocative question to capture the participants’ interest. The environmental problem is then defined, with the aid of graphics and videos, and a discussion follows.

“The last 10 to 15 minutes of the videoconference are devoted to what is most important, namely, what we can do to solve the problem. At that point, we ask the young people to come up with some easy solutions that can be applied right away, cost nothing and will not affect their lifestyle too much,” explains René Brunet, Distance Learning and Videoconference Coordinator at the Biosphère.

“The students listen very carefully; the presentation really works! Each subject is directly tied to the school curriculum,” says Samina Rehmani, a teacher at Agincourt High School in Ontario.

Since October 2006, more than 43 000 young people across the country have participated in at least one of these videoconferences or presentations.

Schools must have a high-speed Internet connection and access to specialized videoconference equipment in order to receive the transmission. The Biosphère can also broadcast videoconferences to more than one classroom simultaneously.

If you prefer to have a speaker come to your school, you must have a minimum of 90 participants. Also, schools in designated official-language minority communities are considered a priority.  

Known for its expertise in education about the environment, the Biosphère also offers, at its museum, a dozen or so educational activities for primary, secondary and college students.

For more information, visit www.ec.gc.ca/biosphere.