More Nova Scotia students will have access to locally grown, nutritious, fresh food with a provincial investment in a school garden program.
Nourish Nova Scotia is receiving $250,000 to expand its Grow Eat Learn program, which helps schools across the province create and maintain food gardens. Timothy Halman, Minister of Environment and Climate Change, announced the funding on April 4 at Admiral Westphal Elementary in Dartmouth.
"This investment will have a lasting impact on students and school communities," said Minister Halman. "School gardens teach students how to grow and use fresh food, bring school communities together and make life more affordable by ensuring students have access to healthy food."
The Nourish Nova Scotia program provides schools with compost bins, rain barrels and other supports. The program also teaches students about healthy eating, culinary trades, sustainable agriculture and food science.
The fresh food grown in these gardens can be enjoyed by students and the community, and it also supports food programs like school cooking clubs and afterschool programs.
The grant is from the Sustainable Communities Challenge Fund. Nourish Nova Scotia will put a team of regional garden mentors in place to add gardens at more schools, strengthen existing school garden programs and create climate-focused resources for teachers to help them teach students how to grow food and care for the environment.
Quotes:
"Working with educators and youth in the garden has shown me that, in addition to being important spaces that support food literacy, gardens are unique learning spaces for students to engage in shaping their school landscapes while participating in hopeful climate action for their communities. Students' mental and physical health benefit from connecting with nature, while applying climate science to real life with projects like improving soil health and creating biodiversity for pollinators. Plus, learning outcomes at all grade levels can be met in the garden. The Grow Eat Learn team is excited to support the Nova Scotia school garden landscape and climate education over the coming two growing seasons."
Jess Ross, school community garden project lead, Nourish Nova Scotia
"Young minds are thriving and growing greener with Nourish Nova Scotia's new and expanded school community gardens. This project provides hands-on opportunities to explore climate science while fostering resilience and sustainability in school communities. By supporting school gardens across the province, we are investing in a future where students grow both their knowledge and their connection to the environment. Congratulations to Nourish Nova Scotia on this impactful initiative, and thank you for your dedication to fostering healthier, more sustainable communities."
Juanita Spencer, CEO, Nova Scotia Federation of Municipalities
Quick Facts:
- Nourish Nova Scotia works to inspire and equip young people in Nova Scotia to learn more about food and transform food systems around them
- the government created the Sustainable Communities Challenge Fund in 2021 as part of the Environmental Goals and Climate Change Reduction Act, its legislated commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, respond to climate change, transform how Nova Scotians produce and use energy, make homes and buildings energy efficient, and more
- the program provides grants to municipalities, non-profit and community organizations, post-secondary institutions and Mi'kmaw communities to help them respond to and prepare for climate change impacts, and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions
- the Nova Scotia Federation of Municipalities was selected through a request for proposals process to develop and administer the Sustainable Communities Challenge Fund on behalf of the government
- since launching in 2022, about $10 million has been invested through the fund
Additional Resources:
- More information on the Sustainable Communities Challenge Fund is available at: https://nschallengefund.ca/
- News releases about the fund and related projects: https://news.novascotia.ca/search/all?field_topics=228
- Environmental Goals and Climate Change Reduction Act: https://nslegislature.ca/sites/default/files/legc/statutes/environmental%20goals%20and%20climate%20change%20reduction.pdf
- Our Climate, Our Future: Nova Scotia's Climate Change Plan for Clean Growth: https://climatechange.novascotia.ca/sites/default/files/uploads/ns-climate-change-plan.pdf
- Weathering What's Ahead: Climate Change Risk and Nova Scotia's Well-being: https://climatechange.novascotia.ca/climate-impacts
- Home Gardening and the Health and Well-Being of Adolescents: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27765876/
