Chair of Education Committee This is My Earth, Oregon, United States
Session Description: The target participants of this workshop are professors and teachers of conservation biology, ecology, geography and related topics at all levels from elementary school to university.
Time (This is My Earth) is a scientific and volunteers-based organization that uses crowd funding to purchase and protect biodiversity hotspots. Using the TiME platform (this-is-my-earth.org) and curriculum teachers engage classes of all ages in discussions about environmental decision making, prioritization of conservation efforts and practical ways to protect nature. Through TiME, conservation education turns into a compelling, real-life experience and a catalyst for individual activism. TiME’s educational programs enhance students’ awareness of global environmental conditions and the ethical imperative of protecting nature. It encourages the students to dwell into deep learning followed by debating for protecting candidate sites based on the TiME website. Moreover, it allows the students to take personal responsibility in raising funds to protect biodiversity hotspots.
Though the aim of TiME’s educational programs is to bring conservation biology into class, it has been used to teach a range of other topics such as geography, ecology, language and social sciences. Moreover, as a democratic, egalitarian, affordable and transparent organization, TiME promotes discussions on democracy and equity and encourages students to become environmental activists with a strong scientific background. Pedagogical outcomes of TiME-educated students are reflected in conservation-oriented actions. Individual involvement is not only facilitated by donating funds, but by voting and campaigning for a favorite biodiversity site.
In this 90-minute workshop we will learn how TiME works, how it has already succeeded in engaging children and adults in protecting parcels in biodiversity hotspots with the help of local environmentalists and will demonstrate and practice using TiME in classes. Participants will receive a hands-on experience, and practice decision-making using the TiME tool in a similar manner to the way it will be used in their classes. We will provide participants both frontal-synchronous, as well as distance-asynchronous teaching tools.
Participants will acquire in this workshop a curriculum outline that can be adjusted and tailored to their classes or other educational frameworks. Moreover, the workshop will initiate the atmosphere and the framework for educators to develop an international TiME education network where teachers and other practitioners will share their experience using the TiME platform. The educators will adopt TiME’s technology and educational approach to engage kindergarten kids, school students and university students in conservation and apply it worldwide for diverse, multi-age and culture populations.
