by Jacob Rodenburg, Executive Director Camp Kawartha
Thanks to a generous Centennial Grant from the Rotary Club of Peterborough Ontario, Camp Kawartha – an award-winning, not-for-profit charity – recently constructed an innovative sustainable Negative Carbon Health Centre. The Rotary Health Centre is a space that not only looks after the health needs of our campers and students but also showcases how buildings can themselves be healthy by incorporating non-toxic materials, being highly energy efficient, and utilizing natural materials. Using the Builders for Climate Action Carbon Calculator, we determined how much energy it took to construct the centre and subtracted how much carbon was absorbed by the materials used in construction. A conventional building of this size would emit 35 tonnes of carbon. The Rotary Health Centre absorbed a total of 5.6 tonnes of carbon. Materials used in construction (all non-toxic) included an earthen floor, straw bale walls, hemp insulation, a living roof, a Nexcem foundation, and Glavel and Poraver made from recycled glass (sustainable brochure can be found HERE).
Sustainable Path Forward
In the second stage of the project, Camp Kawartha added features outside the building that were designed to promote nature connection and mental health. These features included a small waterfall to invite water play, a sensory garden, a bird garden full of native species planted to attract birds, a small Zen area, and benches.
Rotary Health Centre
This is a challenging time for our children. They are facing a daunting future – one of climate change, species depletion, habitat destruction, pollution, and overpopulation. These problems seem so overwhelming that we run the risk of frightening our children into apathy. What is the point of doing anything at all when the future looks so bleak? What difference can one child make? Camp Kawartha believes that instead of only focusing on reducing harm, we should also show our children what “good” looks like. Can we inspire and empower our children to make a difference right where they live? Camp Kawartha is demonstrating how we can create spaces where both people and nature can thrive. Instead of merely sustaining, let’s regenerate the spaces we occupy, making them more nature-rich and ecologically diverse.
The Rotary Health Centre is the latest addition to a series of buildings that demonstrate sustainability in action. Camp Kawartha is also home to the Camp Kawartha Environment Centre – one of Canada’s most sustainable buildings. To find out more, visit www.campkawartha.ca
The Rotary Health Centre has been recognized as one of Canada’s top sustainability projects for its building located on Camp Kawartha’s campus.
