Fleming College

Lindsay ON – (March 20, 2019) – Organized by students in the Ecosystem Management Technology program, the 11^th annual EcoHealth Conference will take place on Saturday, March 23, 2019 at Fleming College’s Frost Campus in Lindsay, Ont.

This year’s conference, Redefining Sustainability from the Group Up, will explore how the health of ecosystems is inextricably linked to the vitality of the complex systems of fungi, soil biota and various pollinators. Participants are encouraged to dig deep, push boundaries and redefine sustainability with a bottom-up approach. Through interactive workshops, thought-provoking exhibits and riveting speakers, students will defy the preconceived notion that humans are separate from the environment. Participants will rediscover their roots as stewards of the land in order to inspire truly sustainable solutions to the challenges of modern life.

The conference will include a hands-on feature, Forest in a Day. Participants will be able to contribute through workshops to the construction and instalment of a rooftop forest at the Frost Campus, starting from the ground up. This will entail building plant boxes, planting various native trees and shrubs in healthy soils, and building a new boardwalk. The Forest in a Day project will greatly contribute to student learning and showcase an innovative solution to improving green infrastructure and combating climate change.

Conference registration, exhibits, vendors, silent auction and photo contest begin at 8:30 a.m. in the Discovery Trail and Alumni Room (Rm. 252). The official conference opening and welcome will begin a 9:30 a.m. A reception and alumni recognition will begin at 3:30 p.m. in the Auk’s Lodge.

Workshops will include:

• Braden’s Believe It-Or-Not: The Wonderful World of Arthropods
• Indigenous Perspectives on Sustainable Harvesting
• Ecosystem in a Jar: Build Your Own Terrarium
• Lifecycle and Hive Dynamics of Honeybees
• Fungi Cultivation
• Campus as a Living Lab: Sustainable Infrastructure in Action at Fleming College

The Pitch Competition:

Fleming’s Office of Sustainability and Fleming’s Fast Start are hosting this year’s PITCHIT Competition at the 2019 EcoHealth Conference. If you have an idea for a new business or social enterprise or sustainable project which can bring benefit to the region, or college campus (Sutherland, Frost and Haliburton) you or your team can win funding for pitching this idea to a panel of judges. This year’s theme is Campus Sustainability Projects. The Pitch Competition will be held in Room 280 at Frost Campus from 10:00-11:45 a.m. on Saturday, March 23, 2019.

Registration for the conference is $15 per person. For more information or to register, visit: www.ecohealthconference.com

For more information about Fleming’s Ecosystem Management Technology program, visit http://flemingcollege.ca/programs/ecosystem-management-technology or contact Barb Elliot, Professor, barb.elliot@flemingcollege.ca.
About Fleming College
Located in the heart of Central Ontario, Fleming College has campus locations in Peterborough, Lindsay, Cobourg and Haliburton. Named for famous Canadian inventor and engineer Sir Sandford Fleming, the college features more than 100 full-time programs in Arts and Heritage, Business, Environmental and Natural Resource Sciences, General Arts and Sciences, Health and Wellness, Justice and Community Development, Skilled Trades and Technology, and Continuing Education. Fleming College has more than 5,900 full-time and 10,000 part-time students, and 71,000 alumni.

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Media, for more information please contact:
Sara O’Halloran

Communications Officer

sara.ohalloran@flemingcollege.ca

705.749.5530 x 1366