- Author: Susana C. Bruzzone-Miller, RDN
What does it mean to live sustainably? How do we protect our natural resources? Oxnard educators will help youth understand sustainability concepts this summer.
Rio School District in Oxnard conducts a district-wide summer camp for their K-6th grade students. This year, the district is partnering with the Hansen REC education team and will deliver the 4-H Sustainable You! Summer Camp curriculum to sixth grade campers. The goals of the camp are to help youth develop respect for their natural environment and learn what they can do each and every day to lessen their impact on the environment and conserve resources. To help enthusiastic teachers prepare, the HAREC team held a Sustainable You! Train-the-Trainer last week. The hands-on training covered the concepts and fun activities for the five sustainability themes: land, air, food, energy, and water.
HAREC educators created activity kits for each sustainability theme. These kits will be on loan to teachers to support implementation of the program at a Rio school site. As an added bonus, over sixty campers will experience “food day” at the Center. Students will explore Ventura County agriculture and as well as harvest, prepare, and sample farm fresh fruits and vegetables.
- Author: Susana C. Bruzzone-Miller
Summer is here! School is out and HAREC summer camps are in full swing. This year 4-H Sustainable You! Summer Camp has expanded to two weeks. Campers arrived ready to learn why it is important to conserve resources, what actions to take and choices to make to ensure resource conservation. This camp teaches youth what it means to be sustainable through fun, interactive activities based around the five major areas: land, food, energy, air, and water.
4-H All Stars, Hannah Hassien, Frankie Cherry, and Harrison Haregleroad kicked off summer programming last week.They did an amazing job of mixing facts and fun as well as including a service learning project for 4-H community club youth. With help of adult leaders, the busy All Stars planned, organized and delivered the Sustainable You! Summer Camp program to 17 campers ages 9-12.
A new group of campers arrived today. This week, we have the pleasure of partnering with the City of Ventura environmental educators. Jill Santos and Lorri Peterson, a dynamic team, will deliver the program open to the community.
Day 1: Land--Campers learn the value of preserved open space, differentiate between trash, recycling, and composting, and create a vermicompost bin to take home.
- Author: Susana C. Bruzzone-Miller
John Fischer, Life Lab Director of Programs, UC Santa Cruz will be the featured trainer on July 17 for a Next Generation Science in the Garden Educator Workshop at HAREC. Using activities from the award-winning Life Lab Science curriculum, participants will learn how to lead engaging, hands-on science lessons outdoors, link garden activities to Next Generation Science Standards, use garden-based science lessons to reinforce Common Core Math and English Language Arts, and much more. Teachers, administrators and garden educators are encouraged to attend. Optional education credit from the University of the Pacific will be available. Registration is now open.
4-H Sustainable You! Summer Camp 2015 flyer
Next Generation Science in the Garden flyer
- Author: Susana C. Bruzzone-Miller
Participants from near and far gathered at HAREC on November 1 for training on the 4-H Sustainable You! Summer Camp curriculum (grades 4-6) developed by Dr. Rosalyn Brain and colleagues from Utah State University. Educators from Kearney and Desert RECs, 4-H leaders from Riverside and Ventura Counties as well as local teachers, parents, and garden educators from various Ventura County school districts enjoyed a day of learning and hands-on activities.
Dr. Hayden-Smith, Sustainable Food Systems Strategic Initiative Leader and 4-H Youth, Family and Community Development Advisor, introduced the workshop and relayed staggering statistics on food waste. Recent research indicates that as a nation, we waste 40% of the food we produce. Americans throw out approximately $180 billion worth of food-an 8% increase since 2008-the last time the USDA calculated the total value of food loss from households, markets, and other food providers. She stressed the importance of starting the dialogue with youth and utilizing the activities from the Sustainable You! curriculum that center around food waste. She also reported that preliminary research conducted among youth participants at an HAREC program, the most significant behavior change as a result of education and intervention was seen in this area.
Chris Massa, 2014 REC summer intern, currently a Food Corps member based in Ventura helped lead the activities. The workshop, structured to simulate a camp setting, covered the five major areas of sustainability: land, air, food, energy, and water.
- Author: Susana C. Bruzzone-Miller
HAREC supports Ventura County agriculture through research and education. Volunteers play a vital role in outreach efforts. We are on the hunt for volunteers to support 4-H youth development programs and activities at the Center.
Over 4800 youth benefited from programs at the REC in fiscal year 2013-2014. UC volunteers work alongside staff and make an impact in the community. Join a dedicated group of individuals that share a passion for agriculture, sustainability, nutrition, and natural resources....and also enjoy working and educating children in this diverse county.
Two informational meetings will be held in the Small Barn:
Wednesday, July 23rd, 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. or
Thursday, July 24th, 10:00 to 11:00 a.m.
Those interested are encouraged to call the office at 805-525-9293 ext. 206 or email awfaris@ucanr.edu by July 22nd. Walk-ins will also be welcomed! For more information and address of the Center visit our website.