Join Peter Donaldson, Director of Learning for Sustainability Ambassadors, as he introduces an innovative model from the Pacific Northwest for advancing sustainability education through community-based collaboration. This “Local Living Textbook” approach blends problem-based and place-based learning to empower students as agents of change. Rooted in local phenomena and aligned with academic standards, the model connects classroom learning to real-world challenges and solutions at multiple scales—from school neighborhoods to bioregions.

Explore how local policies, plans, and performance measures can become powerful tools for student inquiry and action. Peter will share ready-to-use resources and frameworks, including strategies for integrating family cultural knowledge, designing youth-led impact projects, fostering geographic literacy, planning city-classroom climate initiatives, and building green career pathways.

Key Takeaway:

Discover actionable ways to adopt or adapt the Local Living Textbook model in your own region. Learn how to design meaningful entry points and professional development opportunities that support sustainability-focused, equity-driven education.

Presenter Bio:

Peter Donaldson is a strategic storyteller with over 40 years of experience in performance art, public speaking, curriculum design, and community facilitation. He is the Director of Learning for Sustainability Ambassadors, coaching student leaders, teacher leaders, and community leaders on how to advance collective impact strategies, design problem-based learning curriculum, and support sustainable systems thinking at the intersection between classroom learning and community goals, especially city and county climate action plans.

Peter started out as a middle school art teacher tinkering with new models for teaching as storytelling. He frequently found himself impersonating famous artists. From 1986-1996 Peter was the Artistic Director for Youth Theater Northwest, authoring 17 plays for young actors and audiences. In 1994 Peter was recognized as National Youth Theater Director of the Year by the American Alliance for Theater and Education. Peter wrote and acted in his own one-man touring shows, “The Life and Times of Leonardo da Vinci” and “Salmonpeople,” with follow up seminars at high schools and colleges across the northwest. In 2009, he was appointed Distinguished Scholar to the Dan Evans Chair for the Liberal Arts at The Evergreen State College where he facilitated seminars on sustainable systems thinking. In 2010, Peter was recognized by E3 Washington as the Outstanding Environmental Educator of the Year. Peter’s focus on strategic storytelling and sustainable systems thinking is informed by his passion for coaching youth at the cusp of adulthood.