Individual Learning Centre
Students at the Individual Learning Centre in the Yukon are building and implementing a hydroponics system to grow crops to support their school community.
Individual Learning Centre
Students at the Individual Learning Centre in the Yukon are building and implementing a hydroponics system to grow crops to support their school community.
The Problem
Chilly year round temperatures in the North makes it tricky to grow many types of fruits and vegetables. However, shipping fresh produce to communities like Whitehorse, where the Individual Learning Centre is located, is extremely expensive and creates a lot of emissions. This makes it hard for students to access healthy produce consistently throughout the year in a sustainable way.
The Solution
The Individual Learning Centre provides a unique and needed space for students who need a more flexible learning environment, with a focus on training students in hands-on skills! So they decided to address these food issues by building a hydroponics system from scratch to integrate with two other pre-made systems. Students now maintain and grow crops with these systems that are used in their school’s cafeteria year-round, helping provide sustainable and affordable produce for their community.
23
students and teachers worked directly on the project.
140
students and 200 community members who access meals at the school’s cafeteria engaged and impacted by the crops grown from the project.
Lessons Learned
“Our students have been thriving in the hydroponics project, and the indoor garden has been a hub of activity. So far, we've been growing a variety of produce, including lettuce, zucchini, basil, peppers, chives, arugula, oregano, cilantro, kale, dwarf blueberry, tomatoes, parsley, and dill. Some of these items have even made their way into our school lunches—our lettuce and herbs have been highlights in salads and a meatball sub on the menu!”
Liard McMillan, Teacher Lead
“I want to be involved in taking care of the gardens, and I am excited to have access to fresh vegetables year round. It will be neat to have fresh food growing inside when it’s -40C outside in the winter.”
Crystal Charlie, Student
