Ecole des Grands-cedres, Port Alberni, BC
Grant term, 2024-2025
École des Grands-cèdres is a K-7 Francophone School in Port Alberni, British Columbia. We have 57 students and a Strong Start program (kids who are younger than kindergarten age).
A few years ago, we were inspired to create a permaculture food forest. We also wanted to include indigenous plants, a pollinator garden, foods that would ripen during the school year, and a greenhouse.
The Dig In! Seed Grant played a huge role in helping our vision become a reality. Students have been very engaged in garden activities, and we receive a lot of compliments from our neighbours and other people in the community. It definitely feels as though we are inspiring other schools and individuals to create their own gardens. We have also noticed how excited and engaged students are when we are in the garden or learning about garden-related activities in the classroom.
“I love working in the garden and I can’t wait to eat the hot peppers that we asked to grow!” – Will Gibson, grade 4.
We are very grateful to everyone who has contributed to our garden, but we especially would like to acknowledge the parents and grandparents who put together our new greenhouse – it was no small task! Thank you to Dave Gibson, Bruce Lockhart, and Dave Boyle.
