Sustainable Living, Sustainable Learning (SL Squared) is a pilot program that is creating innovative projects with local schools, such as, cob pizza ovens, stationary bikes that make smoothies, sustainable food forests, and digital storytelling.
Together with OUR Ecovillage, we are developing community resources for inquiry-based learning that will work in tandem with the new BC school curriculum.
SL Squared Projects
- Cob Pizza Ovens
- Smooth Move Bikes
- Food Forests
- Indigenous Traditional Knowledge
- Digital Storytelling
Our Team
Brandy Gallagher, Regina Montag, Elke Cole, Nicole King
Shawn Levine – Outreach Coordinator
Shawn recently moved to Vancouver Island and was looking for opportunities that offered community building, working with youth, and care taking of the environment. He is a certified counsellor and has extensive experience working with youth. Engaging with students and keeping morale high is his specialty. With his skills he hopes that he can offer something valuable to the world, while learning about the schools that he works with.
Contact: sl2outreach@ourecovillage.org
Nicole King – Graphic Designer & Marketing Assistant
After living her whole life in urban areas, Nicole was looking for a change of pace. She has been looking for a shift in her experience and was drawn to the project because learning and teaching permaculture design and sustainable living in a community based setting was exciting to her. She is looking forward to interacting with the schools and participate in educating and teaching of the next generation. Her skills are in graphic design, website and mobile design, and marketing.
Contact: sl2design@ourecovillage.org
Neil Bateman – Multimedia Coordinator
Neil was looking for a new experience where he could work in education, and thankfully he was guided in the right direction.. He has extensive experience in information technology and educational psychology. Creating something meaningful, and being part of a team is what drives him. He’s particularly proud of his ‘dad jokes,’ which he shares with O.U.R. community, much to our amusement.
Contact: edprojects@ourecovillage.org
Blake Wilson – Communications Assistant
Blake recently moved from the vast territory of Nunavut, where he helped run the local food centre that helped people build a relationship with food, and worked in the non-profit field of food security. A graduate of UBC’s Creative Writing program, he is very excited to be on Canada’s largest western island, where he has quickly taken to a life of community and working a farm. He hopes one day to use his experience to help others be food sustainable, while also writing the great Canadian novel.
Contact: sl2connect@ourecovillage.org
Gracelynn Lau – Education Coordinator
Born and raised in British colonial Hong Kong, Gracelynn moved to Canada in 2005 for her Masters in Worldview Studies where she encountered ecofeminist theology and changed her life “downside up.” As a horticultural therapist and certified mindfulness teacher, she has been facilitating workshops and education programs for groups of diverse cultural backgrounds. Currently training to be an expressive arts therapist, Gracelynn is excited to bring in fun, creative and interactive arts into the “SLsquared” project.
Contact: education@ourecovillage.org
Regina Montag – Program Assistant
With a wide-reaching background in areas of both teaching and permaculture, Regina has experience with motivating youth in Waldorf School inquiry, hands-on and project-based learning, setting up gardens that integrate with science and math, composting and vermiculture. She hopes to give tools to teachers to help them feel confident about implementing the recently redesigned BC curriculum through experiential learning. Regina is inspired to explore sustainable living, and to make it both attainable and digestible, using a step by step approach of personal involvement.
Contact: sl2project@ourecovillage.org