232696
233057
Campus Life  

UBC hosts international Get to Know Unconference

Youth finalists from across North America will attend the Get to Know Unconference Oct. 3 to 5, hosted by UBC.

Youth finalists from across North America will attend the Get to Know Unconference Oct. 3 to 5, hosted by UBC.

Youth finalists present statements about eco-art projects

The lineup of youth presenters at the Get to Know Unconference in the Okanagan promises to impress.

Rachel Layne, a 16-year-old singer-songwriter who has performed at NHL and WHL games, will sing Earth Song.  First-year UBC student Frances Ramsay will showcase Ocean Dress, a fashion design that illustrates her passion for sustainability.

Other presenters include Florida photographer Archie Rea, a lucky student who travelled to Antarctica eight months ago; videographer, musician, and writer Kayla St-Pierre, a 17-year-old student from Ontario presenting a nature music video; and Vancouver-based videographer Miranda Andersen, presenting a documentary about nature-deficit disorder.

From October 3 to 5, 16 youth finalists of the 2014 Get to Know International Unconference will travel from across North America to UBC to share their eco-art statements. The Get to Know Society has been inspiring connections between children and nature in the outdoors for 15 years.

The presentations are one event in the three-day international Unconference which welcomes youth and environmental leaders from around the world to the Okanagan, including renowned photographer and wildlife biologist Gordon Court, accompanied by Vinnie the Peregrine Falcon.

“Our faculty is thrilled to sponsor an event which raising awareness about the environment, energy conservation and green initiatives,” says Prof. Susan Crichton, director of the Faculty of Education. “It is an important component of an environmental education program, and an ‘unconference’ format offers such promise for meaningful and creative interactions.”

The proceedings are open to the public. Registration fees vary from $300 for the full conference to separately priced individual events. Those attending can register for any of the events, including the Mayor’s Enviro-Art Banquet, where Steve Thomson, Minister of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations and MLA for Kelowna-Mission, will congratulate the winners of the Unconference.

For full details of the conference and to register for an event visit: get-to-know.org/unconference-page

-30-



More Campus Life articles

231675