Linnea and I joined Ecology North on a 3-day journey, from July 8th to July 10th, to Kakisa to assist in hosting a Compost Summer Camp for the youth of the community!
We planned various compost-themed activities, physical activities, arts and crafts, and meals to keep the youth busy, and I think we can safely say everyone had an excellent time! The youth loved face painting, playing tag, grounders, and cooking! We aimed to provide a fun form of education on composting and its importance, which we achieved through the following:
- Compost scavenger hunt
- Compost tag
- Worm, worm, apple core – the compost version of duck, duck, goose
- Vegetable painting
- Teaching youth about composting by cooking with them and composting food scraps properly
We hosted and enjoyed two community meals – one dinner and one lunch, and made banana splits on our last day, which the community specifically asked for! The youth were extremely involved in making meals/snacks and helped set up the community meals we hosted. It was great to work with the youth directly in the kitchen because we could easily talk about composting processes and instruct them on how to dispose of the food waste that was being created.
The youth loved painting – from planters to t-shirts to canvases to faces, everything was painted! We did vegetable painting on the first day where some youth painted canvases of some of their favorite vegetables. We also painted planters that some children took home, to encourage them to grow things in their planters!
The youth were super excited about the camp. Upon our arrival at the community each day, children were ready and waiting at the band office for activities to begin! Talking to the kids about their lives in the community, what they like to do, and what they had planned for the future was interesting and gave insight into life in Kakisa for youth. It was interesting to understand the school system and how each youth had their own curriculum each year. It was also interesting to talk to youth such as Chloe, who had spent the last school year in Yellowknife studying at Mildred Hall!
Dani gave us a tour of what the Laurier students have been up to in the garden beds. She showed us the greenhouse and all of the plants she had been growing during her time there. Justin later showed us and the youth his composting system and how it works within the community. It was nice to see the connection between Dani, Justin, and the community members, as it was clear that the adults and youth of the community had bonded with them during their time there.
We included some pictures below of our time in Kakisa. We overall had an excellent time and think the youth did as well!
