Excerpt from Pine’s 2022 Year in Review Report.
The Pine team is committed to engaging with a decolonial lens and elevating diversity, equity and inclusion in our relations and our work. In 2022, building off of our past learnings and efforts, we took steps to live this commitment more deeply, including:
- Increasing our staff training on equity and inclusion-related themes, with staff participating in five training sessions run by external experts on gender, anti-racism, neurodiversity, mental health and Indigenous teachings.
- Addressing barriers to accessing nature connection programming by:
- Building new partnerships with Eastview Neighbourhood Community Centre (to provide free programming; see above), and Kids in Camp and Toronto Star Fresh Air Fund (to support lower-income families to join summer camp).
- Expanding Pine’s Bursary Fund (28% increase in budgeted amount vs 2021).
- Providing 20 participants with support for seasonal gear and clothing.
- Continuing to incorporate teachings about the history of the land, cultural histories, and Indigenous-Settler relations into our programming in age-appropriate ways; eg:
- Reading books by Indigenous authors (like “Nibi is Water” by Joanne Robertson)
- Learning Ojibwe words for plants, animals and places
- Holding conversations appreciating the history and culture of Indigenous peoples, drawing on Indigenous sources, in recognition of how Indigenous lands, place names, local villages, and ways of life continue to inform the influence and impact Indigenous culture has on our ways of life.
- Establishing plans and dedicating resources to continue this work in 2023 and beyond, including setting a goal to establish a partnership with a local inner-city school to provide free nature connection programming for up to 500 students.