Young People Hold Pacific Salmon Summit
VANCOUVER March 11, 2002
Grade 5 - 7 students from Vancouver, Seattle, Prince Rupert, and Ketchikan issued a Plan of Action today to address concerns about conservation and enhancement of the Pacific salmon fishery. The culmination of six months collaborative research into all aspects of the Pacific salmon fishery, the Plan of Action is the result of an intensive face-to-face Summit at the SFU's Morris J. Wosk Centre for Dialogue.
Observed by representatives from stakeholder groups, youth delegations from the three jurisdictions stood in each other's shoes to negotiate a Joint Statement of Concerns and Plan of Action. Students from Seattle, Washington and Ketchikan, Alaska represented the southern and northern British Columbia perspectives, while students from Vancouver, B.C. represented the interests of Washington, and students from Prince Rupert, B.C. represented Alaska. A webcast of the Summit, together with a concurrent online forum, allowed other students and interested parties to participate in the dialogue, contributing their suggestions and ideas to the process.
The Pacific Salmon Summit was spear-headed by Julie Zilber, Co-Director of 7th Floor Media at Simon Fraser University. "I am so excited about this project," she said. "The work these students and their teachers have done is phenomenal. It just goes to show what students are capable of if they're challenged with real-world problems. I hope that this project will serve as a model for meaningful educational programs that integrate classroom and on-line collaborative learning."
Students who participated in the project not only learned about the complex, inter-locking issues affecting the Pacific salmon fishery; they also gained a greater understanding of the concerns of their cross-border neighbours, and gained insights into the process of consensus-building.
"I've really enjoyed the Salmon Summit project. It has shed a lot of light on the salmon treaty disputes that have been going on for years. I understand a lot more than I did before," said Ross Duncan, one of the Vancouver students. "It's also fun to get to know people from different states and different countries. And I got to learn problem-solving skills that I might be able use in business or politics later on."
Desirae Inkster, an eleven-year-old from Ketchikan, thought the Pacific Salmon Summit project was the best learning experience of her life. "It's been great! I've learned so much - about fish biology, habitat and fisheries, and about Alaska and Canada."
Celia Eklund, Desirae's teacher found the project every bit as exciting as her students. "This has been one of the best professional experiences that I have ever had and I hope that this will help advance education across boundaries," she said.
Vancouver teacher Betty Gilgoff concurred, "This has been such a fascinating 'adventure.' The students pulled together to really make sure that the statement of concern demonstrated the learning journey that they have been on. It was all so very exciting. It truly is moments like this that making teaching all worthwhile for me."
A project Web site (www.7thfloormedia.com/salmon) was developed to support the students and teachers. It contains a rich collection of multimedia topic overviews, background and reference resources, research links, teaching ideas, and material published by the participants. The Salmon Summit website is a wonderful resource for students and teachers throughout the region.
As a follow-up to the Summit, 7th Floor Media and the participating students and teachers will also be making presentations to conferences and teachers' organizations to explain the project and how it works.