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Students to share fishery solutions at Pacific Salmon Summit
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February 5, 2002
For years, Canada and the U.S. have struggled to establish a mutually acceptable policy on the Pacific salmon fishery. On Monday, March 11, nearly 100 elementary school students from both sides of the border will share their solutions when they meet for the Pacific Salmon summit at the Morris J. Wosk Centre for Dialogue in Vancouver.
Youth delegations from Canada, Washington State and Alaska will stand in each other’s shoes to negotiate common ground for the creation of a tri-lateral Pacific Salmon Treaty. Students from Seattle, Washington and Ketchikan Alaska will act as the Canadian delegation, while students from Vancouver will be the Washington delegation. Another group of students, from Prince Rupert, will represent Alaskan delegates.
Selected representatives from various stakeholder groups and the governments of the three jurisdictions will attend the summit as observers.
A webcast, together with a concurrent online forum, will allow a much wider group of students and other interested parties to participate in the dialogue and contribute their suggestions and ideas to the process.
The summit is an initiative of 7th Floor Media at SFU (formerly Excite), which develops a wide range of educational and cultural content for interactive media.
The day-long event is the culmination of six months of online and classroom activities involving students from each region. Their collaborative efforts and proposed solutions to the issues facing their communities can be found online.
Through the project, young participants are learning about the complex, inter-locking issues affecting the Pacific salmon fishery. They’re also gaining a greater understanding of the concerns of their cross-border neighbours, says Julie Zilber, codirector of 7th Floor Media. "They are gaining an appreciation for the complexity of the issues involved and insights into the process of negotiation and compromise. They are demonstrating new models for consensus building. And they might even find a solution that has so far eluded their elders."
Betty Gilgoff, who teaches at Osler elementary school in Vancouver, says using salmon and salmon treaties brings together many areas, including science, Canadian and U.S. history, First Nations people, global concerns, and problem-solving — all important aspects of the curriculum woven throughout Grades 5-7.
Seattle teacher Grace Dublin adds: "Salmon has been a part of the culture, history and economics of the Pacific Northwest since humans roamed this part of the world. Canada and the U.S. must build a new relationship to reflect the 21st century and students in the Northwest must learn more about our neighbouring country."
Zilber says the project is an exemplary model of how to meaningfully integrate face-to-face and online learning. "Every aspect of this project is exciting, from the way the teachers are participating in the development process to the way students are tackling an open-ended, real-world question," she notes. "These students have done incredible work."
Partial funding for the summit has been provided by the J.W. McConnell Family Foundation, the Vancouver Foundation, Fisheries Renewal BC, Allied Hotel Holdings Inc, the Southeast Regional Aquaculture Association, the Kanata Parent Advisory Council and the Ketchikan Indian Corporation.
Members of the media are welcome to attend the summit. The main discussion (focusing on solutions) will take place from 1-4 p.m., with opportunities to interview organizers throughout the afternoon, and students immediately following the event.
Space is limited. Please call Megan Frazer, 7th Floor Media at 604-291-5285 at the earliest opportunity if you’d like to attend.
—30—
CONTACT:
Julie Zilber, 604.291.5273
Marianne Meadahl/Julie Ovenell-Carter, media/pr, 604.291.4323
Youth delegations from Canada, Washington State and Alaska will stand in each other’s shoes to negotiate common ground for the creation of a tri-lateral Pacific Salmon Treaty. Students from Seattle, Washington and Ketchikan Alaska will act as the Canadian delegation, while students from Vancouver will be the Washington delegation. Another group of students, from Prince Rupert, will represent Alaskan delegates.
Selected representatives from various stakeholder groups and the governments of the three jurisdictions will attend the summit as observers.
A webcast, together with a concurrent online forum, will allow a much wider group of students and other interested parties to participate in the dialogue and contribute their suggestions and ideas to the process.
The summit is an initiative of 7th Floor Media at SFU (formerly Excite), which develops a wide range of educational and cultural content for interactive media.
The day-long event is the culmination of six months of online and classroom activities involving students from each region. Their collaborative efforts and proposed solutions to the issues facing their communities can be found online.
Through the project, young participants are learning about the complex, inter-locking issues affecting the Pacific salmon fishery. They’re also gaining a greater understanding of the concerns of their cross-border neighbours, says Julie Zilber, codirector of 7th Floor Media. "They are gaining an appreciation for the complexity of the issues involved and insights into the process of negotiation and compromise. They are demonstrating new models for consensus building. And they might even find a solution that has so far eluded their elders."
Betty Gilgoff, who teaches at Osler elementary school in Vancouver, says using salmon and salmon treaties brings together many areas, including science, Canadian and U.S. history, First Nations people, global concerns, and problem-solving — all important aspects of the curriculum woven throughout Grades 5-7.
Seattle teacher Grace Dublin adds: "Salmon has been a part of the culture, history and economics of the Pacific Northwest since humans roamed this part of the world. Canada and the U.S. must build a new relationship to reflect the 21st century and students in the Northwest must learn more about our neighbouring country."
Zilber says the project is an exemplary model of how to meaningfully integrate face-to-face and online learning. "Every aspect of this project is exciting, from the way the teachers are participating in the development process to the way students are tackling an open-ended, real-world question," she notes. "These students have done incredible work."
Partial funding for the summit has been provided by the J.W. McConnell Family Foundation, the Vancouver Foundation, Fisheries Renewal BC, Allied Hotel Holdings Inc, the Southeast Regional Aquaculture Association, the Kanata Parent Advisory Council and the Ketchikan Indian Corporation.
Members of the media are welcome to attend the summit. The main discussion (focusing on solutions) will take place from 1-4 p.m., with opportunities to interview organizers throughout the afternoon, and students immediately following the event.
Space is limited. Please call Megan Frazer, 7th Floor Media at 604-291-5285 at the earliest opportunity if you’d like to attend.
—30—
CONTACT:
Julie Zilber, 604.291.5273
Marianne Meadahl/Julie Ovenell-Carter, media/pr, 604.291.4323