Enhancing our Watershed through Environmental Education

Dates: March 31, 2023

Price: $15 for adults, $5 for students

Time: 8:00 AM to 2:00 PM

The BVPA’s 8th Annual River Symposium, Enhancing our Watershed through Environmental Education will be held on Friday, March 31, 2023 from 8:00am to 2:00pm at the LITE Center on Cajundome Boulevard. This year, we will also co-host a family-friendly event at the Nature Station at 1205 E. Alexander St on Saturday April 1st.
Henry G. Sanchez, of the BioArt Bayou-torium will present “Bio-Art on the Vermilion.”

The speakers we invited this year excel in the environmental education and outreach arena, with demonstrated positive outcomes in their respective watersheds. They are primarily family and community educators whose mission is environmental education in both formal and informal settings.
Many of this year's speakers will share the story of their organizations which have impacted various watersheds and the environment overall in a positive and transformative way.

● Dr. Brandon Ballengée, our Honorary Chairman, is a multi-disciplinary activist, educator, scientist and artist. With his wife, Dr. Ballengée founded and runs Atelier de la Nature, an eco-educational campus and nature reserve in Arnaudville, Louisiana. They have opportunities for children, adults and organizations to learn more about their environment.
● Dr. Ray Brassieur, Associate Professor of Anthropology at University of Louisiana at Lafayette will discuss conservation of the Bayou Vermilion Watershed through learning our culture's ignored history.
● Henry Sanchez is a Houston based interdisciplinary social practice artist. His projects concentrate on history, social and environmental justice with the natural sciences.
● Jonathan Foret executive director of the Wetlands Discovery Center in Houma Louisiana. The Wetlands Discovery Center is revolutionizing how we think, teach and learn about Louisiana’s disappearing coast.
● Claire Anderson is co-founder and executive director of Ripple Effect Water Literacy Project, a New Orleans-based environmental education nonprofit whose mission is to empower the next generation with the knowledge, skill, and ethical grounding they need to strengthen communities in an era of climate change and sea-level rise.

Our hope is that BVPA along with our partners in preservation will gain insightful knowledge that will improve our ability to educate our community and implement conservation efforts in the Bayou Vermilion watershed. As we celebrate our 10 year anniversary as an organization we are poised to take the Bayou Vermilion watershed and our community to the next level in how we provide education and outreach to the general community about ways to conserve, protect and enjoy the Bayou Vermilion Watershed.