KEYNOTE PRESENTERS
JENNY GROVES
Jenny Groves is a visionary leader and educator with a deep commitment to transformative, nature and place-based learning. With a background in inclusive, global, experiential, and ecological education, Jenny has spent the last 25 years fostering learning environments that connect students to the world. As a public-school teacher, living and working on shíshálh and Sḵwx̱wú7mesh lands of the Sunshine Coast, B.C., Jenny co-created a nature-based public program that pioneered public K-7 nature-based learning program, championing land-based instruction as a powerful tool for student engagement and well-being.
Five years ago, Jenny stepped into the role of principal at Langdale Elementary, where she led a bold transformation at her school. Under her leadership, the school culture has become rooted in ecological responsibility and innovative pedagogy, with land-based learning as a cornerstone of the curriculum across all grades. Indigenous perspectives, environmental stewardship, and community connection have become a part of everyday learning for all students. Classrooms, curriculum, and school grounds continue to be decolonized and reshaped toward an education that offers more authentic, hands-on, inquiry-based learning for the students, staff and families.
Alongside teaching and leading in the public school system, Jenny has held positions in teacher education through Simon Fraser University. As an adjunct professor, she taught Nature-Based and Experiential Learning to multiple cohorts of graduate students. Jenny knows this is a crucial time for both education and the planet—one that calls for radical rethinking of how we teach, learn, and live in relationship with the land. Her work continues to inspire educators to reimagine what school can be when rooted in relationship, place, and purpose.
Jenny holds a Bachelor’s degree in Outdoor Recreation, Parks and Tourism from Lakehead University, an Education degree in Outdoor Experiential Education from Queen’s University, a Graduate Diploma in Nature-Based and Experiential Learning from Simon Fraser University, and a Masters of Education in Creativity, Sustainability and Innovation from Cape Breton University. Her studies have informed her work as a teacher and school leader and fostered her deep commitment to reimagining education through ecological, experiential, and creative lenses.
Presentation summary:
This keynote invites educators and leaders to imagine what’s possible when schools and classrooms connect learning to land, culture, and community. Drawing on the transformation at a school on the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh lands of the Sunshine Coast, B.C., I’ll share how we moved from traditional practices of public education to a whole-school model of land-based learning through visioning, capacity-building, and structural redesign.
At the classroom level, we’ll explore how teachers can challenge entrenched routines and create vibrant, responsive spaces by embedding seasonal rhythms, collaborating across disciplines and classrooms, and building relationships with local Indigenous communities. This is not about new mandates or buildings—it’s about courage, curiosity, and commitment to change. Together, we’ll consider how this approach can spark innovation anywhere, turning education into a force for belonging, sustainability, and hope.
CRAIG MACDONALD
Bio coming soon…