ABOUT IGS

“In my long history in educational leadership I can think of no program that has made more of a difference for more students, and in fact for our planet, than IGS.  If you are interested in education that shapes our future through engagement of our youth, this is the program to explore and these are the people to join in their journey.”

~  Dr. Keven Elder
Superintendent SD69 Qualicum
and past-Superintendent SD63 

The IGS program started in September 2012 at Claremont Secondary School and is all about helping students dive into big global issues. The project-based curriculum gives them the tools and experiences to tackle problems like poverty, food production, urbanization, and sustainable energy.

From the get-go, we aimed to create a program that promotes transformative learning. This type of learning, as described by Mezirow (2003), means changing the way we see things to make our views more inclusive, thoughtful, and adaptable.

We built the IGS program on the belief that sustainability requires changing how we think and behave. Our approach is based on two main ideas. First, the environments where students learn and live shape their understanding of the world. So, we designed the program to teach sustainability both in the classroom and out in the community. Second, all education carries values.

With today's environmental and social justice challenges, we believe educators must actively teach values that support a sustainable future. This idea aligns with a quote from Mary Clark’s book, Ariadne’s Thread: The Search for New Modes of Thinking:

"Education can never be apolitical, 'objective' or 'value neutral': it is—and ever must be—a political endeavour. It either moulds the young to fit in with traditional beliefs, or it critiques those beliefs and helps to create new ones." (p. 234)

After researching extensively, we found an approach called Transformative Sustainability Learning (TSL). Created by Orr (1992) and later expanded by Sipos, Battisti, and Grimm (2008), TSL blends sustainability education with transformative learning. TSL focuses on critical thinking, collaboration, student-centered learning, and building relationships, all through practical, hands-on experiences.

TSL’s core principle is "head, hands, and heart"—integrating academic subjects (head), practical skills (hands), and passion and values (heart). TSL started from projects at the University of British Columbia in the early 2000s.