News

Summer Raffle

July 6, 2022

Did you hear? We’re having a raffle for a brand new cargo e-bike! 

In 2021 the Compost Education Centre began a concerted effort to expand and evolve our Child and Youth Education program, including the crucial addition of a second child and youth educator, Jeffrey Ellom. As a team, Jeffrey and Child & Youth Education Manager, Elora Adamson, have developed a host of new workshops and programs. These include one-off workshops like ‘Bees and Blossoms’, ‘Spectacular Seeds’, ‘Flawless Fungi’ and more! Fundraising from the Summer 2022 E-Bike Raffle will support not only the development of more relevant and exciting science and environmental resiliency workshops for young people, but will also contribute to new programming initiatives such as the ‘Parent-Child Workshop Series’.

Drop by in person, find us at events, or click here to grab your tickets to score this sweet ride.

Winner drawn in September. Thank you to @fairfieldbicycleshop for the generous donation.

1000 tickets, 1 for $2.00; 1500 tickets, 3 for $5.00; 3000 tickets, 10 for $15.00 | BC Gaming Event License #133883 | Winners consent to the release of their name by the licensee. 

*Participants must be 19+ and a resident of BC to enter

Resource for National Pollinator Week

June 24, 2022

This week we are highlighting How to continue in the climate apocalypse with bugs and flowers, a zine by CEC staff member Zoe-Blue Coates. This project highlights the importance of insects in our community and their ability to be our greatest allies in the face of climate emergency.

“This zine is a love note to the wasps, bees, flies, worms, beetles, and others that have taught me how to be gentle in this world despite the destruction & death. I hope you will be inspired to find something that will fill you with hope though this climate apocalypse.” – Zoe-Blue

read the zine

We’re Hiring: Marketing and Communications Assistant (Funding Dependent)

March 31, 2022

Please note: This position is dependent upon Canada Summer Jobs Funding.

The Compost Education Centre (CEC) is a charitable, not for profit organization that provides composting, organic gardening and conservation education to residents of the Capital Regional District (CRD).

Work Week:  The workweek is currently Wednesday-Saturday, 9:00am – 4:30pm, (30-hour per week with a paid 30-minute lunch break; 60 hr pay period).

Job Start Date: April 27, 2022, runs for 16 weeks.

Job End Date: August 14, 2022

A total of: 480 hours

Wage: $19.39 p/hr

For More Details, Click the Link Provided Below. 

Marketing and Communications Assistant Co-op Job Description 2022

Charlie’s Dirt Day Read Along

January 12, 2022

This month we’d also like to share a read along of Charlie’s Dirt Day by Andrew Larson, with illustrations by Jacqueline Huson-Verrelli. This is one of our favourite compost-related kids’s books here at the CEC, for younger primary school aged children. It’s about a boy who discovers that compost can help him grow fruits and vegetables in containers on his balcony! This book is suitable for children ages 3-7.

If you know of any child and/or youth resources (books, zines, videos, workshops, ect.) that would pique our young audiences interests, please let Elora know via email at education@compost.bc.ca.

Community Announcement: Food & Farm Heritage Programs Coordinator

October 28, 2021

Pender Islands Community Hall is looking for a Food & Farm Heritage Programs Coordinator! This is a great opportunity for a person interested in food, farming, gardening, heritage, research and activity programming.

Full time until March 31, flexible hours, some virtual hours.

Click this link to find learn more and how to apply: 2021 – 2022 Food & Farm Heritage Programs Coordinator

In 2021 the Food Security Connections Video came together as a collaborative project of the Food Literacy Working Group of the Good Food Network and the Capital Region Food and Agriculture Initiatives Roundtable (CRFAIR). This project was funded by an Island Health, Community Wellness Grant and supported by the Capital Region Food and Agriculture Initiatives Roundtable (CRFAIR).

The video is meant to spur dialogues and discussions around food insecurity, hear stories from people in our community and from individuals and organizations that are working to alleviate food insecurity through food justice efforts.

Video Production UATE Storied Learning | www.uatestories.com/

Locations in Video The Compost Education Centre www.compost.bc.ca

Victoria Native Friendship Centre www.vnfc.ca/

Saanich Neighbourhood Place www.saanichneighbourhoodplace.com/

Food Rescue Project of the Food Share Network(Capital Region) www.foodsharenetwork.com/-

To learn more about the Food Security Connections Video and it’s complimentary education package please visit www.crfair.ca

Bees & Pollen with the GVPL

October 22, 2021

What’s all the buzz about bees? Join the Compost Education Centre and the Greater Victoria Public Library to learn about the importance of pollinators and discover little known facts about native bees and the integral role they play in our local ecosystem! We’ll chat about how you can help care for bees, and demonstrate a fun and simple way to make your yard and garden more bee friendly!

Frontiers for Young Minds

August 31, 2021

Hey everyone! This month I wanted to share a new resource with you that we’ve been super into lately at the CEC. Frontiers for Young Minds (https://kids.frontiersin.org/) is an “open access scientific journal written by scientists and reviewed by a board of kids and teens.” 

On their website you can find hundreds of articles on a wide variety of topics from soil health and ecology, sustainability, anatomy, chemistry, biology, human health and more. Peruse articles written specifically for youth that will challenge young learners with new concepts, words and ideas while maintaining accessibly with the option to hover over new concepts for definitions, lots of great images and glossaries.

This website is a cool source for scientific info for school projects, or just exploring and learning new information for kids ages ~12 and up! The accessible yet scientific language and cited content would also benefit highschool learners, or adults who are looking to learn something new!

As soil contamination is one of our focuses here at the CEC, this week I was excited to read their article “ How Soil Invertebrates Deal With Microplastic Contamination.” Check it out for a simple introduction to soil invertebrates with detailed images, and a quick breakdown of what they are, what they do, and how they interact with microplastics in our soil! There was lots of info in the article that was new to me, so I hope you can learn something new ? 

BioDiversity Vol.2

August 31, 2021

Volume 2 of our Biodiversity Zine is now published! This new volume is focused on Indigenous Ecological Stewardship and explores stories of 6 Indigenous folks, and the relationship and connection they have with land. 

The Biodiversity zine is written and created for youth by CEC staff member Zoe-Blue! It’s a great resource to explore Indigenous Ecological Stewardship with your children, or as a self guided resource for older youth. The current volume looks at invasive and native plants, remediation, Indigenous plant knowledge and how we can better care for the land we are living on. Click here to view the PDF version of the zine. The Zine is also available for pickup at the CEC, or via mail, both by donation. 

Know of other great resources for child and youth education relating to composting, soil health, or ecology/sustainability more broadly? We would love to hear about them and continue to share these resources. Please feel free to share any resources you encounter with our Child & Youth Education Coordinator Elora at education@compost.bc.ca