To Jenna Gaudet of Summerside, participating in the Envirothon program has been a life-changing event. Now she has shared her love of this science education program by developing an expanded Wikipedia article on the Envirothon program.
The Envirothon is an annual science-based environmental competition for high school-aged students throughout North America. Ms. Gaudet began participating in Envirothon competitions when she was in Grade 10 at Three Oaks High School in Summerside.
“Envirothon is something outside the standard classroom approach to education,” said Ms. Gaudet. “It gave me an opportunity to learn from professionals who work in science fields such as forestry, soil, wildlife and aquatic ecosystems, and that is an experience most students never have.”
Jenna is now a student at Mount Allison University in Sackville, New Brunswick. The Wiki project was part of her second year anthropology course “Environment and Society.” Her professor, Dr. Grant Aylesworth, has been working to improve the quality of Wikipedia content by encouraging his students to contribute to the site through the Wikipedia Education program.
Jenna found a Wikipedia article on the Envirothon program but it was short and the information was very limited. In order to improve the site, she researched sources such as the official Envirothon website, new paper articles, and the History of Envirothon PDF. The result was a significantly improved Wikipedia site en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Envirothon which explores all aspects of the program from its early history, to core topics, current issues, organization, sponsors and links to Envirothon programs in Canada and the US.
“Envirothon definitely inspired my career path,” she said. “Developing the Wikipedia Envirothon page helped me to share the amazing life experiences I have had by being involved in this program.”
During her years at Three Oaks, Jenna and her team mates won the Provincial Forest Envirothon title three times and went on to attend Envirothons in North Carolina, California and New Brunswick where they continued to learn with students from across the continent.
The Provincial Forest Program of the Department of Agriculture and Forestry delivers the Envirothon program with assistance from Agriculture and Agri-Foods Canada, Holland College, Department of Environment, and other agencies.
For more information on the Provincial Forest Envirothon, visit www.gov.pe.ca/forestry/envirothon.