New federal funding is helping to expand a Wilder Institute/Calgary Zoo education program that aims to provide environmental and climate education across Canada.
Since its launch in fall 2024, the program has been aimed at teaching classroom and community educators the knowledge, tools and confidence needed to inspire the next generation of environmental stewards.
The $1.56 million five-year grant has been funded through the Government of Canada and the Environmental Damages Fund’s Climate Action and Awareness Fund.
Wilder Institute/Calgary Zoo Chief Development and External Relations Officer, Steven Ross, said that zoo has long worked with school boards in Calgary and area, and began to wonder how they could impact a larger demographic.
“The concept came together of exploring with educator and partner organizations of ‘what are the gaps that are out there?’ We didn’t want to create education programming that’s a duplicate of what’s already there. So, ‘how can we have the greatest impact?’” Ross said.
“What came back was a recognition that there were gaps in educator resourcing in the space of conservation and climate awareness and understanding.”
By teaching educators, rather than students directly, the program will have a longer, more widespread outreach, according to Ross.
The goal is directly impact nearly 5,000 educators across Canada.
“Everyone recognizes that people will take action for the things that they care about, and to get to that place of caring about it, they first need to be aware,” he said.
“So education is such a pivotal piece in that it’s needed more now than ever.”
Since 2024, the Wilder Institute/Calgary Zoo’s education program has been working to empower students in Alberta and Northwest Territories classrooms, and the funding is set to provide a nationwide expansion for that by 2028.
In the program’s nearly year-long run, The Wilder Institute/Calgary Zoo tripled its presence at Alberta teachers’ conventions and reached nearly 1,000 educators through workshops and outreach efforts.
A full-time Educator Development Coordinator was hired in early 2025 to help scale the program nationally.
The Wilder Institute/Calgary Zoo previously partnered with Mount Royal University to support pre-service teacher practicums, and has been working to finalize a similar agreement with the University of Calgary’s Werklund School of Education.
The zoo’s inaugural Environmental Educators’ Summit, held July 21–25 in Calgary and in Waterton Lakes National Park
The summit brought together formal and non-formal educators from Alberta and the Northwest Territories to build skills, share practices, and explore best practices in environmental and climate education.
