Students from R.J. Hawkey Elementary School enjoyed a field trip to Glenbow Ranch Provincial Park June 20, to learn about Alberta’s grasslands and cattle after the park updated the program through a partnership with the Alberta Beef Producers (ABP). Participants hiked, caught butterflies and learned about cow manure in Glenbow Ranch’s effort to teach environmental responsibility. “Our number one goal is that we create the future stewards of the land,” Sarah Parker said, executive director with the Glenbow Ranch Park Foundation. “We want them to look at the landscape and not just see grass, not just see hills, but see how this ecosystem all around them works, and the interconnectivity of other plants, the animals and what humans do on the land.” According to Parker, the Discover Grasslands program teaches kids about this type of land and what it’s used for, with a focus on the fescues – a type of grass used as pasture for livestock – contained within them. Unfortunately, grasslands are fragile, and endangered by “overgrazing, fragmentation of landscape and the intrusion of invasive plants,” according to the program’s brochure. Less than 15 per cent of fescues in the grassland still exist, Parker said. A new partnership with the ABP allowed for more up-to-date info on responsible grazing, but also injected the program with new life, Parker said. Part of ABP’s mandate is also about education, Parker added. Cattle are one of many organisms that are supported by grasses, and are central to the continuation of grasslands. The program runs year-round, though the spring and fall are busy times for school field trips. Non-school groups with enough participants can also sign up for the program. “I want them to say to their parents, ‘There’s this amazing, working ranch that we can visit 10 minutes from northwest Calgary, let's go,’” Parker said.
