How Dawson College is Developing Corporate Knights (and Maidens)

Last year, an old friend re-surfaced in my life. In the almost two decades we had not seen each other, Dr. Catherine O’Brien has made an international name for herself in the field of education, introducing Sustainable Happiness inside (and outside) the classroom.

In this story for Corporate Knights magazine (ugh, what a silly name for a seriously good magazine) I profile Dawson College’s Living Campus. Catherine has been working with Chris Adam (Dawson’s sustainability coordinator) to bring life to education, and education to life.

Garden of Peace

“I have such a grin on my face talking about this,” Annie Quadros says, recalling her three years at Dawson College and her experience with its Living Campus at Québec’s largest CEGEP.

While there are lots of living things on this 12-acre greenspace in the heart of downtown Montréal – like butterfly sanctuaries, insect resorts, beehives, meadows and other microhabitats – the 21-year-old recent graduate emphasizes that “the Living Campus is not necessarily something that is always tangible.” Rather, these opportunities to connect with nature are the catalyst that brings life to education and education to life. In the process, it also creates change agents like Quadros with the competencies to tackle complex 21st century challenges.

Continue Reading “Garden of Peace”

Photo credit: Unsplash/Boudewijn Huysma

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