Jason Kimberley talks at a speed what one might say is like a million miles an hour.
The CEO and founder of what now is called Cool Australia gives every appearance of a man who is always in a hurry.
He has every right to; he’s a man on a mission – to spread the gospel of sustainability into classrooms. He does that by offering free curriculum-aligned learning resources and tools to school teachers and students across the country, tailored to their specific needs.
The man at the helm of the not-for-profit organisation these days is pounding the pavement at an extra brisk pace as the time is drawing very near for his key event of the year – Enviroweek, from August 24-30.
Mr Kimberley set himself mountainous challenges when he formed what he then called Cool Melbourne in 2008.
Now with a new name – Cool Australia – its programs have spread to schools across the country.
Mr Kimberley says 15,000 teachers and more than half a million students, including from Melbourne, now use the organisation’s learning resources.
The number last year was 6000 teachers and 200,000 students.
He says the organisation, which does not get any funding from state or federal governments, offers free easy-to-access learning activities linked to the curriculum for early learning, primary and secondary school students.
Mr Kimberley says 90 per cent of teachers in the country want to adopt and teach sustainability practices, but more than 85 per cent are unsure about how to do it.
‘‘We fill that gap, help fulfil teachers’ demands, provide learning activities and lessons focusing on topics including energy, water and climate change.
‘‘This is our gift to Australia. We are changing the face of education in Australia by incorporating the real natural world understanding as part of the key school curriculum, and offering lessons/challenges with focus on maths and English.’’
Mr Kimberley says the programs have helped build teacher confidence and improve their skills with the help of ready activities.
He says the organisation helped participating school teachers make a saving of $14 million in time with the use of its free material.
He says 200,000 students from 1800 schools are taking part in Enviroweek this year, compared with last year’s numbers of more than 160,000 students and 1350 schools.
They take up green challenges and discover how their action counts for the natural world with black balloons measurements. For the event, 2,134,849 black balloons have been saved.
For details, visit www.enviroweek.org or coolaustralia.org, or phone 1300 853 810
