The Ontario Wilderness Leadership Symposium is a unique event designed to support the development and leadership of young or early-career outdoor educators, including wilderness guides, teachers, camp staff, and canoe trip leaders. Starting from the understanding that all education, at its core, is about building good people, OWLS looks beyond the "hard skills" of outdoor education work. Join a community of peers, along with experienced mentors, in this co-learning event and focus on the deeper questions that are rarely asked. Illuminating the often-murky waters of educational practice, OWLS will examine such questions as: what is outdoor education? How is the campfire a site of learning? Why are wilderness trips such potentially powerful experiences, and how do we ensure that they are for our students?

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Taking the form of a 3-day canoe trip in either Killarney or Algonquin, OWLS is a unique experience. With the trip itself – and the natural world – as our co-teachers, we invite you to join us in June and be part of Ontario’s next generation of outdoor education leaders.