$20,000 schools’ Environmental Curriculum Awards open

An annual $20,000 fund which helps fund and recognise Northland schools’ environmental education initiatives is up for grabs again.

Pakaraka School was among 23 Northland schools to receive ECA funding in 2013...will your school be next?

Last year a record 23 Northland schools received funding from the Northland Regional Council Environmental Curriculum Awards (ECA) for 25 schoolground projects involving everything from disappearing native frogs to re-emerging kiwi.

Council Environmental Education Officer Susan Botting says the council had recently sent fliers to 150 Northland schools alerting them to the 2014 awards, with would-be recipients given until 4pm Tuesday 13 May to make their application.

Ms Botting says to secure award funding, schools need to clearly highlight how their project/s contribute to the sustainable use of Northland's environment, a key regional council goal.

"Each school can apply for a maximum $2000 in Environmental Curriculum Awards' funding, which must be spent on school-based environmental education projects within school grounds.''

Ms Botting says while the 13 May deadline is still some time off, schools are being urged to file their applications sooner rather than later.

"This helps us avoid a last minute rush that can slow application processing times."

She says since its inception in 1995, more than 15,000 Northland students have been involved in ECA-supported projects. Even after almost 20 years the council continued to be surprised and pleased by the imagination behind – and scope of – the environmental education projects involved.

Application forms can be downloaded from the council's website: www.nrc.govt.nz/eca (The website also includes details of previous award winners and their projects.)