The Whycocomagh Eco-Centre presents:
Granville Street Project (formerly known as Full Circle)
at the Mabou Community Hall - Saturday May 31, 2008

On Saturday May 31st the Whycocomagh Eco-Centre will be hosting a fund raising dance at the Mabou Community Hall in Mabou on Rte 19. The dance will feature “the Granville Street Project” formerly known as “Full Circle”. The band is a collection of Strait Area musicians including. The Whycocomagh Eco-Centre is a non-profit organization and Granville Street Project will kindly showcase this event with all monies raised going directly towards the Eco-Centre.

The Whycocomagh Eco-Centre’s aim is to facilitate and promote awareness, appreciation, knowledge and stewardship to nature. Our unique Centre offers a wide variety of captivating summer programs including; Tourist Programs, Eco-Camps for youth, and special events! All of these events incorporate and teach about nature, living creatures, art, music, and the overall culture that is indigenous to this very special part of the world.

The band, "Granville Street Project", formerly called "Full Circle", grew out of the Port Hawkesbury Community Band in recent years. The band is a collection of Strait Area musicians who come together once a week for music and fun. Band members have a long history of involvement in many musical capacities and each performer brings a unique talent to the group. Recently the band decided to offer our music to community events and monies raised are donated to charity. There are eleven musicians in the band with drop-in guests. New musicians, especially brass and wind players are welcome to join at any time. The band plays a mixture of classic rock, blues, and swing. popular and jazz.

Kids in the Forest - May 2007 and May 2008

For the past two years the Whycocomagh Eco-Centre has been a proud supporter and participant of Kids in the Forest, which is coordinated by the Department of Natural Resources. It is a day where all Grade 6 classes in the Inverness and Victoria Counties are invited to the Whycocomagh Park to have fun and learn about what is available in our province in regards to natural resources. The event takes place from 9am-1:30pm and the day is always enjoyable and educational.

Earth Day - April 22nd, 2008

The Day began with the Grade Primary, One and Two classes participating in the “Earth Day Relay Race”. During this relay classes were divided into teams and each team completed tasks environmentally related including; Eco Trivia, Recycling, Healthy/Unhealthy Habitats, Charades, Puzzles, races, etc. All students who participated had a fabulous time and learned how to make our world cleaner and more sustainable.

After this event the Grade Three, Four and Five classes had the opportunity to create a “Whycocomagh Green Map”. Teams were asked to construct a map of the Whycocomagh area showing all the environmental assets in the community. This included parks, recycling centres, farmers’ markets, wildlife habitats, rivers, oceans, environmental resource buildings, etc. This activity was a wonderful way for the Whycocomagh Education Centre students to learn about their local community and about the resources of their area. The day was extremely successful with students learning a lot and having fun while doing so.

Fisheries Focus Project - November 2007- April 2008

During this school year the main focus of the Whycocomagh Eco-Centre was the Fisheries Focus Project. This interactive, well informed presentation was developed by the Centre in partnership with CVRB (Comité de valorisation de la rivière Beauport) and Environment Canada/Eco Action, and was delivered to Cape Breton schools.

The goal of the project was to educate members of the Cape Breton community about the issues of salmon and trout population decline; inspire participants to take action, and hopefully instill a life-long interest in improving their respective communities approach to fisheries conservation for the benefit of the environment. Based upon the positive responses and interest received from participating classes, Fisheries Focus has proven to be a successful pilot project.

Natural Connections Concert - November 28th, 2007

To raise much needed funds, the Whycocomagh Eco-Centre held a concert featuring local talent from the Cape Breton Area. The concert featured Mary Jane Lamond as emcee and singer, as well as a fine selection of musician including; Patrick Gillis, Shelly Campbell, Allan Dewar, Hugh John Beaton, Robbie Mac Lean, Sandy Mac Donald, Wendell and Brain Ellis, Harvey Mac Kinnon, Ryan J. Mac Neil, Tyler Mullendore, Haley Batchilder, and students from the Whycocomagh Education Centre. The night was a total success and provided the audience with a pleasing and memorable evening.

Open House - Wednesday November 14th, 2007

The Eco-Centre held an open house for the general public on Wednesday November 14th, 2007. This was a chance for people to tour the Eco-Centre and discover all the wonderful creatures, artifacts, paintings, and ecological and cultural art created by the students at the Whycocomagh Education Centre. The night was one of relaxation and fun with food and beverages provided, however the main attraction was renowned photographer and naturalist Wally Ellison. Wally concluded the night with the fabulous talk “Cape Breton in all her Glory”, where he showcased all the main attractions and hidden treasures of the island. Guests were extremely impressed with the open house and it truly added to the Centre’s positive reputation.

Pumpkin and Scarecrow Contest - October 26th, 2007

The Centre hosted a pumpkin and scarecrow contest for Halloween where members of the Whycocomagh community were asked to design and create a scarecrow that would be judged against others. The winner was rewarded a $50.00 prize, many families participated and it proved to be a fun and festive event!

Drive Wise Workshop - October 10 2007

Clean Nova Scotia and the Eco Centre held a workshop on how to save money while protecting the environment. It is a project funded by Conserve Nova Scotia and it focused on proper driving habits for reduced fuel consumption and reduced environmental impact.

Whycocomagh Eco-Centre celebrates Freedom! - October 4th, 2007

World Animal Day is celebrated each year on the 4th of October. On this day the excitement in the Whycocomagh Education & Eco Centre was tremendous, as this day had been selected to celebrate “World Animal Day” by liberating the frogs and toads of the Whycocomagh Eco Centre. Buddy, Spotty, Hopsy and Pickle who had called the Eco-Centre home for a year were released and set free into the wild. We couldn’t have asked for a finer day; great attendance and fabulous weather was the backdrop for the frogs and toads to venture and discover everything in their new world.

Special Events - Wednesdays in July 2007

Each Wednesday in July the Eco-Centre hosted a special event highlighting ecological and cultural issues in the Cape Breton area. Presenters and topics covered included:

» Joy Dunlop- Milling Frolic
» Wally Ellison- Waterfalls
» Drive Wise Workshop

Admission was free for these enthusiastic events and they were truly enjoyed by all participants

Coming to Life Conference: A Celebration of your Connection to Nature - July 23-25 2007

This was a summer conference for individuals to explore both the ocean and earths ability to revive and energize an individual in work and life. This conference provided participants time to reflect on their inner landscapes through art and workshops, while experience the rich culture and pristine beauty of the Island.

Keynote Speakers:
» Mitchell Thomashow
» Anne Camozzie
» Barry Wilson
» Marilyn Webster
» Cindy Thomashow
» Betsy Jardine
» Marie Stradeski

Public Forum (Facilitator Theresa MacNeil of the Biosphere) - July 23 2007

A public forum was held on the opening evening of the conference.The forum included a number of notable speakers including Albert Marshall, Mi’kmaq elder and member of CEPI (Collaborative Environmental Planning Initiative), Eskasoni; Jim Foulds (UNESCO Biosphere Reserve Project); and the keynote speakers, Mitchell Thomashow, Cindy Thomashow and Anne Camozzi.

Water Wise - September/October 2006

The Eco-Centre’s Water Wise program was funded by Eco Action/Environment Canada that helps community groups to make a positive impact on their local environment. This workshop provided valuable information, and was a highly interactive workshop that helped students practice skills they need to become leaders in their school and community. The program also offered free water conservation kit (faucet aerators, low-flow showerheads, etc.) to every participant for use in their school and home. The activities in the workshop included hiking, canoeing, team building, role playing, debating and more. This program was also delivered to businesses, community groups and families.

Getting to the Heart of the Matter - July 11-14 2006

Sponsored by the Nova Scotia Department of Education, Enterprise Cape Breton Corporation and the Whycocomagh Eco-Centre

A Summer Conference on how our Ecological Identity Informs Our Life For nature, science, life and/or education enthusiasts who wanted to immerse themselves in a meaningful learning experience in a beautiful setting Through explorative, interactive methods, we investigated how our understanding and experience of nature informs the way we see the world and our place in it.

Guest Speakers:
» Dr. Mitchell Thomashow: the Chair of the Environmental Studies Department at Antioch New England
» MJ Barrett, University of Regina,
» Dr. Gordan Barker, STFX ,
» Paula Knowles: Heartwood Institute
» Phyllis Bernard: Mi’kmaq Cultural Consultant
» Marilyn Webster, Department of Education

Earth Day - April 2006

On this day all of the Whycocomagh Education Centre participated in fun and educational Earth Day events. The events were created by the staff and volunteers of the Eco-Centre and included activities;

»  The natural survivor challenge
Here the team is asked to come up with an amazing name that illustrates their connection to the earth and nature and either a slogan or a symbol that represents their name

»  Earthy charades
Groups are given a bag of charades pertaining to the earth, each individual gets a turn to pull a charade out of the bag and act it out for their team

»  The Songwriters Circle
Groups are given the choice of any type of composition i.e. rap, lullaby, rock etc. the only rule is all compositions must be regarding the earth and contains as many natural words as possible

» A highland fling
Information on the connection with the Scottish people and the earth Here students will learn some information and sample the music of the people through learning the working tunes like puirt a beul (mouth music), walking, milking, sailing and planting

» Who or What am I? Earthy guessing
The facilitator of this station will put a word on each persons back, the person will then turn around to show the group the word, next the person is given one clue from the facilitator i.e. “you are a mammal” the person will then ask questions to their team mates that require a yes or no answer i.e. Am I small?

Guests included: Christine Gillis Campbell, Joy Dunlop, Michelle Smith