Trees of Knowledge Competition for school communities

Trees of Knowledge Competition 

 

The MAJESTA Trees of Knowledge Competition is back to help Canadian schools win a $20,000 outdoor classroom. Since 2011, MAJESTA, Tree Canada and Focus on Forests have helped schools take learning outdoors. For more information, including full eligibility requirements, visit www.majestatreesofknowledge.ca.

 

 

School Communities wishing to participate in the MAJESTA Trees of Knowledge competition will be evaluated based on the following criteria:

Selection Criteria

• The School is deserving:
  Why does the school feel they need & deserve this outdoor classroom?
  How will the school and community benefit from this?
• A well thought out plan:
  Does the school have a solid plan which includes key objectives, landscaping plan, maintenance and a realistic timeline?
• Likelihood of Success:
  Does the school have a strong plan for involving parents, teachers, students and the community in the project? Will their plan require additional funding? If so, is there a plan to obtain additional funding?
• Promotion Plan:
  Does the school have a robust plan to drive support during the voting portion of competition? (community support, local media, social media, etc.)

Note: Consideration will be given to schools that are able to add value to the project through fundraising or in-kind donations such as landscaping assistance via materials or labour.

• Timing:
  A commitment to the planting and completion of the project by Oct./Nov. of 2013.

Documentation Criteria

Your submission must include the following documentation:

• Completed application form (See Download Application Form section of this website);
• One to five photos of your school grounds, including the proposed site of the outdoor classroom (in .jpeg, .gif, .png, or .bmp format no larger than 2MB);
• Landscape-site plan;
• 400 word (3500 character) essay describing why you believe that your school should be chosen to receive an outdoor classroom;
• A letter of commitment for your outdoor classroom project from the School Board;
• Optional: video submission (2 minutes max) including who you are, your plan and why you deserve the prize. To upload your video please follow the steps below:
1. Click here for video format guidelines (less than 80 Megabytes).
2. In Step 2 of submitting your application form online, click "Browse" to select your video.
3. Select video file from your computer & click "Open". Depending on the file size of your video it may take some

1. time to upload.

Upload all other required components of your application.

Click "Submit". Your application, along with your video will be submitted.

Note 1: Costs for the ongoing care and maintenance of the trees is the school's responsibility. These costs will not be included as part of the project. Trees, especially newly planted trees need nutrients, water, sunlight and room to grow. A commitment to the first three to five years of a tree's life will help to ensure its survival.

Note 2: Tree Canada encourages the use of native species and will not fund the planting or maintenance of invasive plants. For a list of invasive plants and why they are such a problem for Canadian ecosystems please consult the following Environment Canada website
www.ec.gc.ca/eee-ias/default.asp?lang=En&n=986EC44D-1

Note 3: Tree Canada encourages the integration of trees and shrubs into flowerbeds, in order to keep edge trimmers and lawn mowers away from the living bark of plants.