Naturalists from across the province meet twice a year, to meet, discuss issues and talk about issues facing the great outdoors in the province. The Yellowhead Flyway Birding Trail Association hosted the spring meet of Nature Saskatchewan in Saltcoats, putting together a weekend to focus on the province’s outdoors.
Rob Wilson with the YFBTA says that while hosted in Saltcoats, the weekend meet was something that showcased the entire region. He says that the birding group is spread across the region, and while the center of the meet was in Saltcoats many of the people involved come from across the area.
One of the goals of the weekend was to connect youth with nature, an effort that spurred on a concerted effort to involve the local school in the weekend overall. The main part of that effort was the ecomuseum for a day project.
An ecomuseum is a museum without walls, explains Glenn Sutter, curator of human ecology with the Royal Saskatchewan Museum, a way for communities to give a higher profile for the area’s local, living heritage.
“It’s a way for communities to look at things that are really valuable to them and then give those things more profile in the decisions the community makes. They’re all about helping the community be more sustainable, be aware of what is happening in the area, and be aware of what their heritage says about those things,” Sutter says.
Students went through hiking trails, gardens in the area, the local cemetery and different exhibits hosted by local businesses. They learned about nature and history through the program, Wilson explains, such as learning about burrowing owl or the history of the town, the first village in the Northwest Territories.
While every community considering an ecomuseum gains the support in a different way, in the case of Saltcoats the school has been one of the main drivers behind the program, including having students document the process and Sutter says it’s a perspective that is great to see, as the decision makers of tomorrow need to have that grounding in their heritage.
“It’s all about making a community a great place to live, so if this community wants to retain people, that’s the people they would focus on,” Sutter says.
This is a new concept, there were no ecomuseums in the province at all just four years ago, but now five communities are exploring the concept, Sutter explains. Nipawin, Val Marie, White City and North-Central Regina are currently the other communities looking at the concept.
While it was just an ecomuseum for a day, the goal is to see if this is something that will be a permanent fixture in Saltcoats. Wilson says that while the concept was put together for one day, but they hope the day’s event can lead to having something more permanent for the town. Sutter believes Saltcoats has what it takes.
“They have all the pieces for a really amazing ecomuseum. It’s just a matter of galvanizing the interest and developing a common vision. I think this is going to happen,” Sutter says.
