About Us
Little Green Steps WA is a not for profit program that supports Education for Sustainability (EfS) in early learning centres in Western Australia. This includes childcare centres, preschools, family day care, kindergartens, after school care and long day care services for children aged 0-8 years.
Little Green Steps WA (LGS WA) is working together with an extensive range of educational resources, networks and local communities towards our common goal of giving children the confidence and skills to have a positive impact on their lives and their environment.
By linking to the National Quality Standards (NQS), Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF) and Australian Curriculum (AC) sustainable practices aren’t about adding more to your busy schedule, it’s simply changing how you do things and we show you how.
As you already know the first few years of a child’s life are integral to their overall learning and development. Sustainability is nationally considered to be a fundamental part of this early childhood development. In order to teach about sustainability we help you understand not only what it means, but why it is important and how to demonstrate these values on a daily basis. Along with their families the staff in the early years services are the children’s most significant role models.
To assist you with understanding and implementing sustainable practices in your centre, school or service we offer support, workshops, resources, information and advice. For our members this website provides a forum to get connected with other educators, managers, directors to share ideas, support and encourage each other.
Together we will continue to take those little steps towards a more sustainable practice; regardless of what stage you are at in your journey.
By working together, we can set our children up with the tools to help us create a more sustainable future for all.
Our History
Our Very First Step
Little Green Steps is an initiative of the Gosford City and Wyong Shire councils in New South Wales. In 2012 the Australian Association for Environmental Education WA Chapter was successful in gaining a Lotterywest grant to run a 12 month pilot of Little Green Steps, which began in July 2012. The Western Australian pilot directly supported sustainability learning and practice in three not-for-profit childcare centres, one each in the cities of Canning, Gosnells and Armadale. This pilot proved to be very successful.
During the ‘Pilot Phase’ there was a lot of interest shown from other educators who were facing similar challenges in implementing sustainability in their day to day learning. Because of this interest Little Green Steps WA ran a few 4.5 hour workshops in Perth and even in Albany. These proved to be very popular and were very well received.
Continuing to Step Forward
At the beginning of 2014, Lotterywest awarded Little Green Steps WA another grant to continue running the program in a slightly different model. This means we are currently in the ‘implementation phase’ of the long term establishment of Little Green Steps WA.
That’s right, Western Australia: we’re planning on being here for the long haul! We pride ourselves on being community based and being a platform to support anyone in the early learning sector with implementing EfS in their centres and/or services.
This year we have also partnered up with the City of Cockburn to trial of a local government based approach. Our primary focus will continue to be growing and facilitating state-wide networks, however this trial gives us the opportunity to determine the benefits of working directly with a local government.
So far the relationship formed between Little Green Steps WA and City of Cockburn has been very positive and we look forward to continuing our strong relationship with the city into the future.
Due to the success of the workshops during our pilot project we continue to offer workshops in order to reach out to as many educators across Western Australia as possible. We want all educators to feel confident with Education for Sustainability (EfS) as we work together building a better future. Some workshops are hosted through specific networks, and some are open for individuals to sign up to. If your centre, school, education network, or community would like to host a Little Green Steps WA workshop please visit the workshop page or email us at lgs@aaeewa.org.au.
NEW: We now offer a membership program that allows members to access exclusive resources and discounts to our workshops. To learn more about the benefits of our membership program visit the membership page.
We welcome any feedback you may have on any of our resources, and would love to hear how you make use of them in your early years service!
By working together, we can set our children up with the tools to help us create a more sustainable future for all.
What You Say About Us
Little Green Steps WA is proudly supported by:
