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Welcome to the 2026 Outdoor Learning Conference
Venue: Raven clear filter
Thursday, May 7
 

3:15pm MDT

Going Beyond “Nature Connection” – Building a Robust Framework for Your Outdoor Learning Practice
Thursday May 7, 2026 3:15pm - 4:30pm MDT
Outdoor learning, when done well, is the best form of good teaching. But what is outdoor learning: what are we doing – educationally and pedagogically – when we take our teaching outdoors, be it the local park or a backcountry canoe trip, and how do we know if it’s working? In this workshop we will examine the underlying beliefs and unquestioned assumptions behind some of the most common frameworks of outdoor learning. As we acknowledge their benefits, reveal their limitations, and question their implications, we will work together to put theory to our actions: taking your educational values, experiences, and goals and weaving them around the fabric of your existing outdoor learning practice to create a robust educational framework unique to you. Coming away from this workshop with a deeper understanding of how pedagogical practice operates and an enhanced awareness of the unspoken assumptions of much outdoor learning, this is an opportunity to take your practice to the next level.
Speakers
avatar for Anissah Rajpatee

Anissah Rajpatee

Graduate Researcher & Curriculum Developer, Trent University & Headwaters Wilderness Program
I am a graduate student in the Master of Arts in Canadian and Indigenous Studies program at Trent University in Peterborough, Ontario. My research focuses on the implementation of land-based pedagogy into environmental education specifically within Ontario with the goal of increasing... Read More →
avatar for Devin Mutić

Devin Mutić

Director, Headwaters Wilderness Program
Devin Mutić is a philosopher and nature-based educator. As the Director of Headwaters Wilderness Program, he is an organizational leader focused on creating forward-looking outdoor education programming that connects students with the cultural and ecological past, present, and future... Read More →
Thursday May 7, 2026 3:15pm - 4:30pm MDT
Raven
 
Friday, May 8
 

11:00am MDT

Grounding Education within the Health Professions through Connection with Land: Land-Based-Pedagogy towards Wholistic and Interconnected Care.
Friday May 8, 2026 11:00am - 12:15pm MDT
Participants with spend guided time on the land and as a community of learners, considering how connection with land might foster authentic health care and service provision. This workshop is appropriate for health care workers, educators, and land-based organizational leadership.


Through access to land, water, air, space, and the more-than-human components of the natural environment surrounding this event, we will focus discussion and learning outcomes around building community, reflection on self as a member of system, and human/more-than human interconnectedness - Wholism.


As we expose participants to these environmental components on the land, we will ask them consider links with health/care provision in a number of ways/through multiple perspectives (personal/interpersonal/the more-than-human/community/national/planetary). We will combine interaction with the natural elements alongside talking circles to connect our experiences and perspectives.
Speakers
avatar for Angela Mashford-Pringle

Angela Mashford-Pringle

Associate Professor, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto
Dr. Mashford-Pringle is a member of Timiskaming First Nation, but was born and resides in the Toronto area. She is an Associate Professor at the Social & Behavioural Health Sciences division at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto. Her research has focused... Read More →
avatar for Lynn Henderson

Lynn Henderson

Director, Kim & Stu Lang Community Healthcare Partnership Program, Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph
Dr. Lynn Henderson is the Veterinary Director of the Kim & Stu Lang Community Healthcare Partnership Program at the Ontario Veterinary College. Dr. Henderson leads the program’s clinical and learning teams who are engaged in community-based service learning. She oversees the relationships... Read More →
Friday May 8, 2026 11:00am - 12:15pm MDT
Raven

2:00pm MDT

Embracing The Great Wide Open: Building Teacher Capacity Outdoors
Friday May 8, 2026 2:00pm - 3:15pm MDT
This interactive session explores the journey of Outdoor Experiential Education (OEE) within the Halton District School Board and the board’s commitment to mental health and wellbeing, as well as environmental leadership. We will highlight our current approach, which involves collaborating with lead educators from school divisions and OEE facilitators to implement a long-range plan tailored to each school’s unique needs. We’ll also address the challenges of measuring educator and student impact and how our model has adapted to support their journey.


Participants will engage in hands-on activities connected to environmental sustainability and various curriculum areas, using the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a guiding framework.


We’ll conclude by discussing strategies for integrating outdoor learning into classrooms, empowering educators to harness the outdoors as a dynamic learning space.
Speakers
avatar for Sarah Patterson

Sarah Patterson

Instructional Program Lead: Science and OEE, Halton District School Board
Sarah Patterson is an educator with 19 years of experience in primary, junior, and intermediate classrooms within the Halton District School Board. Currently serving as an Instructional Program Leader for STEM assessment and Outdoor Experiential Education, she is passionate about... Read More →
avatar for Tanya Woods

Tanya Woods

Instructional Program Lead: Health & Physical Education and OEE, Halton District School Board
Tanya Woods is an educator with 28 years of experience in the Halton District School Board. Tanya spent the first 16 years of her career as a junior/intermediate educator and has since transitioned into a system leadership role as an Instructional Program Leader with responsibilities... Read More →
avatar for Rachel Irwin

Rachel Irwin

Manager Environmental Sustainability, Halton District School Board
Rachel is a certified Ontario Master Naturalist with a B.Sc. in Environmental Science from the University of Guelph and a postgraduate degree in Environmental Visual Communication from Fleming College and The Royal Ontario Museum. As the Environmental Sustainability Manager for the... Read More →
Friday May 8, 2026 2:00pm - 3:15pm MDT
Raven

3:30pm MDT

Wildflower Wisdom: Teaching Ecology, Teamwork, and Stewardship through Urban Restoration
Friday May 8, 2026 3:30pm - 4:45pm MDT
Transform your schoolyard into a living classroom! This bilingual, hands-on workshop immerses educators in the process of assessing, planning, and restoring habitats through native plant gardening and invasive species management. Participants will explore how outdoor learning spaces can promote biodiversity, ecological restoration, and student engagement while prioritizing safety and respect for the land. Using tools like iNaturalist and guided by Indigenous perspectives and the New Pedagogies for Deep Learning framework, attendees will gain practical strategies to lead authentic, cross-curricular, land-based learning projects that have a real impact on our environmental crisis. Through field observation, collaborative planning, and resource sharing, participants will leave ready to guide students in creating outdoor spaces that foster stewardship, curiosity, and ecological awareness.
Speakers
avatar for Andrew Cameron

Andrew Cameron

Enseignant - secondaire, Conseil scolaire de district catholique des Aurores Boréale
Based in Northwestern Ontario, Anishinaabe territory of the Robinson-Superior Treaty, Andrew Cameron is a francophone educator at École secondaire catholique de La Vérendrye in Thunder Bay. Before entering education, he spent eight years as an Ontario FireRanger, gaining hands-on... Read More →
Friday May 8, 2026 3:30pm - 4:45pm MDT
Raven
 


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