Program Length: shorter 1 week experience
Longer 4 month Gap semester type experience
Location: Canadian Rockies in Alberta, and Yukon
Admissions Requirement:
• Students and interested youth 17-30 years old
Admissions Deadline: Varies depending on the program.
Highlight: Modern day education, to some, has killed the passion for learning amongst the youth. The HOWL experience is a unique education program that takes a step back from traditional learning methods and encourages youth ages 17-30 to get a clearer picture about how the world works, how it sustains us and seeing more of the myriad options we have for contributing to that relationship. Armed with this understanding, youth (and people at all stages of life) are then clearer about their direction and their decisions around creating a plan that can get them there. There are several learning options open to youth at the moment. First, there is a more introductory Rockies (Tips and Telescopes) Program which takes place in various communities in the treaty 7 region of Southern Alberta and explores learning about the night sky, conservation, and local communities over the course of 7 days in the fall, at a cost of $250/person. Next, there are a couple of more academically affiliated/ research experiences: the Yukon Exploration which is a 7-10 day summer trip through traditional territories that includes some experience at the Kluane Lake Research Station– a world class research facility operated by the Arctic Institute of North America through the university of Calgary. High Schools are also welcome to contact Howl about booking their own designated trip for this experience. And finally (in terms of shorter experiences anyway) there is a 10 day Rockies Exploration Experience that is more mountainous in geography (includes Banff and jasper Nat’l Parks) and focuses on climate change, wildlife conservation, Indigenous co-management of lands, agriculture, energy, geology, forestry, mining, renewables, tourism, and apparently even more! The Yukon and Rockies Exploration Experiences each carry a cost of $2500/student though this includes all accommodations and food and travel within the experience. Tuition also works on a sliding scale — see details here. On the longer side of experiences, there is The Rockies Gap Semester Program which is a 4-months long program in the Bow Valley Community focused on learning sustainable life skills, connecting with community needs. and entrepreneurship training. The cost of this program totals to $10,000 for which financial assistance is available as well as an FAQ page and a continuous invitation to “stay connected” to clear any queries around details. The idea of this education program primarily combats the traditional education system and strives to bring more focus and context to our relationship with our environment, as well as, to our relevance, purpose, and place in the world as stewards of it. As Nelson Mandela said, “Education allows us to better understand the world we live in.” Take this very real opportunity to experience real education.
Cost: $250-$500 Tips an Telescopes trip; $2500 CAD for 1 month program and $10K for 4 month program. NOTE***There is a sliding scale for payment and there are flexible ways to integrate with work/ study opportunities as well!
