On Sunday November 21st, AITC-C leader Johanne Ross was officially inducted into the Canadian Agricultural Hall of Fame. Our organization was extremely honoured to be able to celebrate Johanne and all of her various accomplishments over the years with her family and friends.  

After graduating from University of Manitoba with a degree in Agriculture and spending several years in the agri-food sector, Johanne joined Agriculture in the Classroom Manitoba as Executive Director in 2000. She grew AITC-M from a “one-women show” to a thriving organization. In 2015, she shifted to a national focus leading the development of AITC Canada as a cross-country effort to bring ag education into every classroom, inspiring every student. 

Johanne is a proud community booster where she and her family live on their farm near Minnedosa, Manitoba. She has served on countless boards and committees, and is a driving force who has inspired hundreds of partnerships and collaborations for AITC and beyond. 

All of this, combined with her genuine passion and enthusiasm for sharing Canada’s agriculture and food story, have made her a champion for agriculture education for more than 20 years. This induction into the CAHF celebrates the lasting legacy of not only her leadership, but the importance of agriculture education to all Canadians. 

AITC-C is ecstatic to announce we were awarded three Best of CAMA awards at the recent virtual event. 

The thinkAG website won the Website directed at the General Public category. The thinkAG website’s goal is to engage and inspire youth and beyond to consider a career in agriculture – no matter their interests or skills. In addition to our category, the thinkAG website won for Best in Show for all public facing communications. 

We’d like to thank Lesia Design and Digital for assisting our team in the creation of this website. 

Our 2020-2021 Annual Progress Report won in the Specialty Publications category. Our Annual Progress Report has gained more than 1400 page views, and outlines our collective national impact across our 10 provincial organizations. We are extremely proud of not only the report but the impact it reflects. 

We’d like to thank Arcana Creative for the creation of the stunning illustrations, and Kim Sabourin for her work and expertise. 

Canadian Agri-food Marketers Alliance (CAMA) is a national alliance connecting Canada’s agri-food marketers and communicators. The Best of CAMA is our industry’s annual showcase of creativity, marketing, and communications expertise.  

 Agriculture in the Classroom Canada (AITC-C), along with its 10 provincial members, is inspiring students to explore careers in agriculture and food this November for Canada Career Month, a national campaign initiated by the Canadian Career Development Foundation (CCDF). By putting agri-food careers into the spotlight through its thinkAG initiative, AITC-C hopes to get Canadian teens curious about the diversity of careers available in the sector and help close the labour shortage gap. 

To celebrate Career Month, AITC-C is releasing their new Career Case game, fully launching the interactive thinkAG website, and providing some sneak peeks at the upcoming Kareero app that will be available for download this spring. AITC-C is also spearheading a 30-Day thinkAG Challenge to classrooms and parents to empower students to learn that their diverse skillset, interests, and unique background is not only needed in the agriculture and food industry, but will help to provide them with a fulfilling career that can positively impact our country and world.  

“AITC-C and its thinkAG initiative is excited to be joining Canada Career Month for the first time ever! We want students to realize there is a place for them in the agriculture and food sector, and that they can find a meaningful career in the industry, whether or not they grew up in a farming environment,” said Shayla Hertz, AITC-C’s thinkAG manager. “Career Month is the perfect time to get these conversations happening in the classroom, around the dinner table, and on social media.” 

Beginning over 20 years ago, Career Month has been run by a collaborative group of career development professionals, educators, and organizations, and is celebrating 2021 with the inspiring theme, “it’s possible”.  Career Month runs from November 1st through November 30th. Follow along with #CareerMonth and #ItsPossible to learn how we can get Canadian students to thinkAG.

Read the full release here.

Agriculture in the Classroom Canada (AITC-C), along with its 10 provincial members, is excited to launch a teaching guide with interactive resources for Guardians of the Grasslands, a documentary that explores the role that cattle play in the survival of Canada’s vanishing grasslands ecosystem.

Through a funding partnership with the Canadian Cattlemen’s Foundation (CCF), Guardians of the Grasslands in the Classroom complements the 12-minute documentary through viewing and reflection questions, an online scavenger hunt, and a student-developed board game based on their investigative research. It also connects to further readings exploring the key topics of biodiversity, soil health, climate change, and land management.

“Guardians of the Grasslands in the Classroom is a curriculum-linked, purpose-driven opportunity for teachers and students to learn about and reflect on the endangered grasslands ecosystem in a way that fosters critical thinking and creativity,” said Melissa Galay, Education Specialist with AITC-C.

Most Canadians – let alone students – are not aware of the important role that cattle play in preserving and maintaining what remains of our country’s grasslands. Through the documentary and fun, interactive learning resources, students will learn how ranchers, conservationists, and others are working together towards protecting what is left the grasslands.

"By developing Guardians of the Grasslands in the Classroom as an educational resource, students across Canada will have the opportunity to learn about cattle's important role in preserving grassland ecosystems. We are proud to partner with Agriculture in the Classroom Canada to further showcase our industry's positive environmental story to youth across the country," said Bob Lowe, Chair of the Canadian Cattlemen’s Foundation.

Guardians of the Grasslands in the Classroom is targeted at Grades 7 to 11 students, and is available for free download on AITC-C’s Curriculum Connected Resource Matrix, found here.

The Guardians of the Grasslands documentary is available for public viewing here.

AITC-C is excited to release its newest curriculum-linked teaching tool, connectAG.

The interactive, online resource aims to support students’ understanding of where and how our food is produced, while also examining the challenges and opportunities producers face. The resource examines farms from all Canadian provinces and enables students to learn about agricultural commodities from many farmers, allowing them to make links to our food system.

“We are looking forward to teachers and students diving into this e-learning resource and exploring what agriculture looks like across the country,” said Melissa Galay, AITC-C’s Education Specialist. “Agriculture and food production is so unique in each province, and this resource tells part of that diverse food story through interactive elements.”

The free, bilingual resource is geared at Grades 7 to 9 and is available for Canadian teachers to bring into their classrooms, as well as for parents and students for at-home learning. The French version will be available later this week. 

connectAG is accessible on our Curriculum Connected Resource Matrix, found here.