It is with some delight that The Expositor took note of the recent awarding of full eco-certification by EcoSchools Canada for having 100 percent of their schools attaining the mark for 2022—making RDSB one of only two to succeed in that feat across the entire nation.
This is a singular accomplishment and one that is extremely timely for our age.
With the spectre of climate change and daily confirmation of environmental contamination in the water, air and earth of the planet, there has never been a more vital time in which to educate and inform our youth if we are to secure their futures and the futures of their descendants.
So long have human beings taken our planet’s natural resources for granted that many turn a blind eye to the reality staring them straight in the face, selfishly refusing to accept that humanity has reached the zenith of what the earth can support and surpassed that mark.
The Tragedy of the Commons has indeed become a tragedy of crisis proportions for not only humanity, but for nearly all living things with whom we share this precious blue ball hurtling through the vastness of space.
Manitoulin Island can be proud of its public schools, Assiginack, Central Manitoulin, Charles C. McLean and Little Current elementary schools and Manitoulin Secondary School (MSS). MSS and Mindemoya’s CMPS attained platinum certification, while Manitowaning’s Assiginack Public School and C.C. McLean attained gold. Little Current Public School has attained bronze, rounding out the score.
Island schools from the RDSB, Wiikwemkoong Board of Education and the M’Chigeeng Board of Education have always punched well above their weights when it comes to science, with teams down through the years excelling at the Science Olympics, countless science fairs at regions of all levels and, most recently, several launching robotics teams that compete across the province and beyond. We have much to be proud of in our Island youth.
These scores confirm that the next generation is committed whole of heart to make concerted efforts to take environmental action, a commitment that spans the entire RDSB.
As a newspaper, we have been proud to chronicle the efforts of elementary and secondary students as they spend their time cleaning up streambeds and shorelines, the shoulders and ditches lining our highways and roads and the trails and pathways of Manitoulin, mirroring the efforts of the unique Manitoulin Streams organization.
So today take a moment to thank a student for their efforts, but also consider joining them in their endeavours, for out of the mouths of babes oft comes great wisdom, and all evidence points to our youth being very wise indeed.
Hurrah for our students, their teachers and other mentors, for in their efforts they are ensuring a better world for all of us.
