School Workshops

Shifting thinking inside the classroom

 

Common Earth offers engaging and interactive workshops that invite teachers and/or students to explore ways to improve their educational journeys. Our unique approach uses a systems lens to encourage curiosity, reexamine mindset, and identify interconnection as essential elements in understanding and responding to the climate emergency.

School Workshops
TESTIMONIALS

Why Take a Common Earth Course

At the heart of our organization lies a commitment to providing meaningful educational journeys. There’s no better way to illustrate this than through the stories of those who have experienced this first hand. We hope their stories will inspire you.

Garth Nichols
Havergal College – Toronto, Canada
"Havergal has been working with Common Earth to support the programming for our "TC-9 Course". This course is a transdisciplinary course designed to put students in front of big challenges of our time using the framework of the UN SDGs. Com…
Philippa Prinsloo
London, United Kingdom
"Common Earth is a brilliantly designed course and expertly facilitated. Each week I felt like there was yet another “Aha” moment – I found the whole experience incredibly expansive. Built on the foundations of First Principles and Syst…
Kirt Charter
St. Michael's College School – Toronto, Canada
“As a co-moderator of the Common Earth Club at our school, I've been impressed by the profound growth and understanding our students have demonstrated in embracing the challenges of a “post-carbon caring society”. Through the teaching…
Samantha Cameron
Toronto, Canada
“I enjoyed the Common Earth program so much. Each of the topics, pre-work assignments and discussion questions were so well thought out. You can tell how much care and effort has gone into crafting the program. The pre-work was the right…
Stefano Tronci
Hong Kong
I joined Common Earth because I felt the need to acquire new knowledge and tools to apply to my work in sustainability. Through the course, I knew I would learn how to view Climate Change as a systemic issue and understand the economic, soc…
Ishu Subba 
ICA Nepal , Katmandu, Nepal
“For a person without knowledge of environmental science, the Common Earth Course deepened knowledge and understanding of the climate crisis. The course provided ample opportunities for dialogue across cultures, and geographies. It also i…
Bob Jeffery
Sudbury, ON – Canada
Common Earth took me on a journey of both familiar, vaguely familiar and new narratives. The readings, discussions and shared reflections really grounded the learning. The stories we shared were as valuable as the material that I read. The…
Irene Barr
West Vancouver, Canada
“I loved the Common Earth program.  The pace of the work and the variety of information was actually exciting to learn and the people that I met throughout the program allowed me to develop relationships that went beyond the program.  I…
Susie
New Jersey, United States
For a non-technical person, this has been a great experience for me to understand better what the scientific and mathematical issues are that are driving climate change.
Clara, Grade 12
Toronto, Canada
The Common Earth Youth Program gave me insight into the climate crisis but also my peers and the way that they view the world around them. It gave me and many of my friends a safe space to reflect on ourselves and many other issues. I was s…
Swikriti Parajuli
Kathmandu, Nepal
My journey with the Common Earth Course has been profoundly transformative and enriching. The most valuable aspect was gaining a deeper understanding of Systems Thinking, which completely changed how I perceive interconnectedness and reshap…
Felipe
Amsterdam, Netherlands
I joined this program hoping to help make positive change in the world and it went way beyond that, starting with a deep personal change. This program is life-changing and a force for good! Every single human should go through this experien…
Ella, Grade 12
Toronto, Canada
The program has completely changed the way I think and view every situation. I’m more attuned to different perspectives, especially nature’s. My view on the climate crisis has changed to positively hopeful, after witnessing incredible w…
Shubhani Budhathoki
Kathmandu, Nepal
This educational journey has been nothing short of enlightening, fostering a deep appreciation for the urgency and complexity of the climate crisis while equipping me with the knowledge and skills necessary to be a proactive agent of change…
Corina
Ottawa Valley, Canada
There were so many “This changes everything” moments during both modules. I have been able to move past much of my frustration and feeling overwhelmed with the global problems. I, now, feel like I have an entire community of people that…
Wesley, Grade 12
Toronto, Canada
Common Earth was a program like none other I had ever heard of. Each meeting introduced new and more efficient ways of thinking that I could build off and use in other parts of my life. The people I met were such a big indicator of the type…
Garth Nichols
Havergal College – Toronto, Canada
"Havergal has been working with Common Earth to support the programming for our "TC-9 Course". This course is a transdisciplinary course designed to put students in front of big challenges of our time using the framework of the UN SDGs. Com…
Philippa Prinsloo
London, United Kingdom
"Common Earth is a brilliantly designed course and expertly facilitated. Each week I felt like there was yet another “Aha” moment – I found the whole experience incredibly expansive. Built on the foundations of First Principles and Syst…
Kirt Charter
St. Michael's College School – Toronto, Canada
“As a co-moderator of the Common Earth Club at our school, I've been impressed by the profound growth and understanding our students have demonstrated in embracing the challenges of a “post-carbon caring society”. Through the teaching…
Samantha Cameron
Toronto, Canada
“I enjoyed the Common Earth program so much. Each of the topics, pre-work assignments and discussion questions were so well thought out. You can tell how much care and effort has gone into crafting the program. The pre-work was the right…
Stefano Tronci
Hong Kong
I joined Common Earth because I felt the need to acquire new knowledge and tools to apply to my work in sustainability. Through the course, I knew I would learn how to view Climate Change as a systemic issue and understand the economic, soc…
Ishu Subba 
ICA Nepal , Katmandu, Nepal
“For a person without knowledge of environmental science, the Common Earth Course deepened knowledge and understanding of the climate crisis. The course provided ample opportunities for dialogue across cultures, and geographies. It also i…
Bob Jeffery
Sudbury, ON – Canada
Common Earth took me on a journey of both familiar, vaguely familiar and new narratives. The readings, discussions and shared reflections really grounded the learning. The stories we shared were as valuable as the material that I read. The…
Irene Barr
West Vancouver, Canada
“I loved the Common Earth program.  The pace of the work and the variety of information was actually exciting to learn and the people that I met throughout the program allowed me to develop relationships that went beyond the program.  I…
Susie
New Jersey, United States
For a non-technical person, this has been a great experience for me to understand better what the scientific and mathematical issues are that are driving climate change.
Clara, Grade 12
Toronto, Canada
The Common Earth Youth Program gave me insight into the climate crisis but also my peers and the way that they view the world around them. It gave me and many of my friends a safe space to reflect on ourselves and many other issues. I was s…
Swikriti Parajuli
Kathmandu, Nepal
My journey with the Common Earth Course has been profoundly transformative and enriching. The most valuable aspect was gaining a deeper understanding of Systems Thinking, which completely changed how I perceive interconnectedness and reshap…
Felipe
Amsterdam, Netherlands
I joined this program hoping to help make positive change in the world and it went way beyond that, starting with a deep personal change. This program is life-changing and a force for good! Every single human should go through this experien…
Ella, Grade 12
Toronto, Canada
The program has completely changed the way I think and view every situation. I’m more attuned to different perspectives, especially nature’s. My view on the climate crisis has changed to positively hopeful, after witnessing incredible w…
Shubhani Budhathoki
Kathmandu, Nepal
This educational journey has been nothing short of enlightening, fostering a deep appreciation for the urgency and complexity of the climate crisis while equipping me with the knowledge and skills necessary to be a proactive agent of change…
Corina
Ottawa Valley, Canada
There were so many “This changes everything” moments during both modules. I have been able to move past much of my frustration and feeling overwhelmed with the global problems. I, now, feel like I have an entire community of people that…
Wesley, Grade 12
Toronto, Canada
Common Earth was a program like none other I had ever heard of. Each meeting introduced new and more efficient ways of thinking that I could build off and use in other parts of my life. The people I met were such a big indicator of the type…
  • Workshops are available to be delivered online or in-person.
  • Timing ranges from 1-3 hours to a full day, depending on school needs.
  • The workshops can be combined for a comprehensive experience and be distributed over multiple days.

Workshop Benefits

Students apply knowledge across study areas thereby including the teacher in a co-learning, rotational leadership classroom model.
Lifelong learning is buoyed by developing conceptual understanding, allowing students to apply Big Ideas across contexts and disciplines.
Teachers and students expand their curiosity, wonder and connection together.
Teachers and students get comfortable with making complex connections through a learning process that strives to mitigate unintended consequences while being open to emergent possibilities.
Students apply knowledge across study areas thereby including the teacher in a co-learning, rotational leadership classroom model.
Lifelong learning is buoyed by developing conceptual understanding, allowing students to apply Big Ideas across contexts and disciplines.
Teachers and students expand their curiosity, wonder and connection together.
Teachers and students get comfortable with making complex connections through a learning process that strives to mitigate unintended consequences while being open to emergent possibilities.

Workshop Options

Remembering What You Already Know
The Classroom as Commons
The Evolutionary Process
Zooming Out (To Zoom In)

Remembering What You Already Know

  • Systems – identifying natural and human-created systems and what distinguishes one from the other (intervention, intention to control, limitless growth vs oscillation towards default equilibrium) 

  • Sustainability – looking to nature’s wisdom can lead us to better planetary and (therefore) human outcomes 

  • Purpose – there is a default wisdom inherent in us all that allows us to recognize the power of thought and our ability to choose a different story

Remembering What You Already Know

Remembering What You Already Know

  • Systems – identifying natural and human-created systems and what distinguishes one from the other (intervention, intention to control, limitless growth vs oscillation towards default equilibrium) 

  • Sustainability – looking to nature’s wisdom can lead us to better planetary and (therefore) human outcomes 

  • Purpose – there is a default wisdom inherent in us all that allows us to recognize the power of thought and our ability to choose a different story

The Classroom as Commons

The Classroom as Commons

  • Systems – identifying systems archetypes particularly The Tragedy of the Commons and turning your classroom into the Triumph of the Commons

  • Sustainability – ensuring climate justice and wellbeing for all communities on Earth rather than the benefit of a few 

  • Purpose – Agency and collective Freedom 

The Evolutionary Process

The Evolutionary Process

  • Systems – complexity has been increasing since the creation of the universe with the Big Bang 

  • Sustainability – interfering with our own and other species’ natural creative evolutionary process defies Earth’s systems resulting in the lost opportunity for planetary and human adaptation

  • Purpose – hope resides in the idea that our human path and its impacts on other creative forms are incomplete, we are a species still in progress (as is everything else) 

Zooming Out (To Zoom In)

Zooming Out (To Zoom In)

  • Systems – everything is a system within a system, both macro and micro

  • Sustainability – Using our ability to collect data while also exercising imagination shows us how zooming out allows us to see ‘the story’ playing out over time, and to anticipate unintended consequences of our past and current actions

  • Purpose – this information can be used to design a better present and future

CONTACT US

Reach Out

We love talking about what we do and how it can make a difference to you.