Vision

In support of Zero Hunger (Student Voice):
We want to make a difference to help feed people in our community and around the world. We believe that no one in the world should have to go without food. In 2020, 2.4 billion people, or above 30% of the world’s population, were moderately or severely food-insecure, lacking regular access to adequate food. Also, 149.2 million children under 5 years of age, or 22%, were suffering from stunting (low height for their age) in 2020. That is why we are choosing to support the Zero Hunger SDG. Our goals are to help with world hunger by donating the money we make from the products to the Parkdale Food Centre. By providing money to the Parkdale Food Center, we will help them feed our community.

In support of Climate Action: (Student Voice):
We are concerned. Unless we take action, sea levels will rise 30-60cm by 2100. Droughts will impact the lives of hundreds of millions of people, displacing them from their homes. Climate experts say that medium and large-scale disasters could increase 40% from 2015-2030, which we have definitely seen in the recent past! Our goals are to reduce climate change and help the earth repair itself one step at a time, for as long as it takes. We want to start by making small, personal decisions to help the environment, but we also want to educate about eco-friendly alternatives. The more people who are on the same page, the greater impact our work can create. As we said; we are concerned, but we are also hopeful.

Action

Students were introduced to the 17 Sustainable Development Goals. Together, we reviewed all the goals and engaged in insightful discussions regarding their significance and actionable steps to support them in our daily lives. Students then spent time exploring the goals that interested them.

We held votes on which SDGs we wanted to focus on. Students chose SDG #13 Climate Action and SDG #2 Zero Hunger. Students felt that these were two SDG’s that related to them as some members of our school community may not have access to food, and we are all impacted by climate change.

Students then researched local charities that related to these two global goals. They found two charities that they wanted to partner with; the Ottawa Carleton Wildlife Centre and the Parkdale Food Center. They thought that by helping the environment, they can help with the habitats of wildlife. PFC is a community food bank steps away from our school.

Students brainstormed different ideas of products that they wanted to make to help raise funds. Students were quickly engaged in this project due to the fact that SDG’s are real world problems that they wanted to tackle. They were excited to help find solutions and engage in a hands on learning experience. They were also excited that this project was grassroots, with them creating their own business and selecting every aspect of it. Students brainstormed different means and approaches to support the global goals, and eventually developed product ideas that they could create and sell to support the global goals. Students pitched their ideas to the class and we held class votes. There were incredible product ideas pitched by students including: plant balls, soap, candles, and more. Ultimately students chose to create beeswax wraps, seed paper, and plant starter kits. Students then investigated local charities that they wanted to partner with that also linked to the SDG’S. Throughout the project we collaborated with Youth Ottawa, an organization in Ottawa that helps foster entrepreneurship skills in youth.

Students developed a variety of entrepreneurial skills through this project. They led every aspect of it from sourcing the materials from our community, ensuring all items were ethically sourced, to business and product names and logos, business plans, to making the products, advertising, and more. Each week students took on a different part of the project. There was a marketing group, an advertising group, a community connections group, and a website group. This allowed for students to try on different roles and see what interested them the most.

Eco seed paper is a special eco-friendly paper made from post-consumer materials embedded with wildflower, herb or vegetable seeds. When you plant the paper in a pot of soil or outside in a garden, the seeds in the paper germinate and grow into plants. We made these using paper from the recycling bins in our school and blending them with water. Students used the cricut machine to create a sticker for our product.(the green one you see below)

We created plant starter kits to help our community grow fresh herbs. Our plant starter kits had a variety of seeds including basil, thyme, rosemary, an dill. We designed our logo on the cricut machine (seen below) and used it to print on our boxes. Each kit comes with information on how to properly care for your plants.

Beeswax wraps are a eco-friendly alternative to plastic wrap. We created “Hive and Thrive”, a package of a small, medium, and large beeswax. We made the wraps by using beeswax, jojoba oil, and pine resin purchased at a zero waste store. We visited different classes in the school to promote the use of beeswax wraps.

The wraps are made by melting beeswax, pine resin, and jojoba oil on a hot plate. We then poured the mixture on the material and used an iron to spread it out properly. Using our Cricut machine, we created a logo. It took several tries to get this right!

Reflection & Celebration

Students had the opportunity to present their projects at a local event called “untapped.” Where youth showcase their social entrepeunership projects.

Throughout this project students have been engaged and innovative. They have shown amazing leadership abilities. Although they had guidance from teachers and community members, they truly did every aspect of this project on their own.

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