When a grade 2 class from Discovery Elementary School (in Shawnigan Lake, BC) heard about the environmental problem of plastics in the ocean, they decided it was time to take action by making art from trash.

Of all the ocean's mysteries, none are more confounding than the orca. What are they? Where did they come from? What do they want?! Join infamous Field Zoologist Brad Gooseberry as he reveals the secrets of these majestic beasts of the deep.

From the creators of Fake Ghost Tours, Abdul Aziz and Shawn O'Hara bring you a "lecture" by "world-renowned" and totally "qualified" field zoologist Dr. Brad Gooseberry.

When a grade 2 class from Discovery Elementary School (in Shawnigan Lake, BC) heard about the environmental problem of plastics in the ocean, they decided it was time to take action by making art from trash.  

Orca Dining with the Shaw Centre for the Salish Sea

What's on the menu? Food webs are complex and connect all living things in an ecosystem. Explore the links in one chain of the Salish Sea food web — the orca food chain. The coast of BC is home to three ecotypes of orca, all making different selections off the menu. Learn through creating a craft with the Shaw Centre for the Salish Sea.

Materials needed:

The Saturna Island Marine Research and Education Society is a community-based non-profit organization building awareness of marine life and ecosystems in the Salish Sea. Martin Wale will give an update on new, evidence-based research and education from SIMRES.

Register in advance for this webinar:
https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_5kCf0yuuQ-26FjIFoLDwzw

Join host Liz Crocker and Tina Kelly, Director of Learning and Communications at the Shaw Centre for the Salish Sea as we try our luck whale watching from land! No guarantees that we’ll see any orcas, but you never know. Tina will share tips on what to look for and we’ll dive into a discussion of the beautiful Salish Sea that our southern resident killer whales call home.

Create a Watercolour Resist Orca Painting

Let’s have some fun experimenting with watercolour resist while learning to draw an Orca. First we’ll draw and colour our Orcas while learning about the different relationships they have in our waters. Then we will have some fun discovering what happens when we apply watercolours to create the many blues of the ocean.

This session will be led by arts educator Jeri Engen, from Kudzu Studio.

Materials needed: 

Meet two members of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Whale Protection Unit in Victoria. Morgan Van Kirk and Willi Jansen will update us all on efforts to protect cetaceans and answer your questions. More information about the 2021 Management Measures to support Southern Resident Killer Whales can be found here. 

Class Act- Eco Art for a Cleaner Future

When you notice a problem, what actions can you take to start making things better? 

The Surfrider Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to the protection and enjoyment of our world's oceans. Surfrider Foundation Vancouver Island Volunteer and UBC Graduate student Zoë Melanie Minnaard will share how technology is being put to use to encourage and help with beach clean ups. Find out how you can use the Beach Clean Up app to help. 

Accessibility is a dynamic subject. Our understanding of its best practices continues to evolve, in large part thanks to feedback from community members and accessibility professionals. In that spirit, and to celebrate National AccessAbility Week, the Royal BC Museum will be hosting a virtual panel on the future of accessibility in the galleries, libraries, archives and museums (GLAM) sector.

Join host Liz Crocker and author Mark Leiren-Young (Orcas of the Salish Sea), for an outside conversation about orcas. Why should we be paying closer attention to their plight? What do humans have in common with orcas and where do our lives intersect? Our conversation will take place at the beach, where we’ll keep a look out for whales!

Museum Field Trip - Behind the Scenes Part 2

Every first Wednesday of the month for RBCM @ Home (Kids) we'll go on a field trip of sorts to a new part of the Royal BC Museum.  

We'll show you back hallways and secret doors, as well as familiar animals and old town dioramas. Each month a new area to explore. This month we'll be going behind the scenes.

Wherever we end up, we'll sketch that area. So get your curiosity, some paper and a pencil ready.

Supplies needed:

Executive director of The Whale Museum in Friday Harbour, Jenny L. Atkinson will help us learn to identify orcas we might see in the Salish Sea. What is unique about these ecotypes and how can we help to protect them?

On the day of the event please click the link below to join the webinar:
https://zoom.us/j/97989047516?pwd=MnFJTzFPSkIvdXRBamhOU1Y4QnByQT09
Passcode: 210952

NOTE: If you purchase your ticket after 2:00 pm on Saturday, May 29 please contact Kim Gough with your confirmation number in order to receive your Zoom link. 

Into the Interior with Landscapes of Injustice

Into the Interior is a choose-your-own-adventure, interactive narrative game, that follows two Japanese Canadian siblings as they experience internment during the 1940s.

Attendees will participate in a fun, collaborate play-through with University of Victoria students and game developers, Jennifer Landrey, Natsuki Abe, and Nathaniel Hayes.

Hear about the first-person oral history What Was Said to Me: The Life of Sti’tum’atul’wut, A Cowichan Woman. Our panelists will be Ruby Peter's three daughters Stu’matulwut Molly Peter, Sti’tum’atye’ Adele Joe and Sti’tum’atul’wut Bernadette Sam along with  collaborating author Helene Demers.

Register in advance for this webinar:
https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_r7iF4pHpSJC0uC0N3wHWNA

Join RBCM@ Outside host Liz Crocker and Michael Abe, project manager of the Landscapes of Injustice project, for a virtual walk and talk about the history of the Japanese Teahouse in Esquimalt Gorge Park on Vancouver Island.

We All Rock

Rocks and minerals are all around us, but did you know how important they are in our every day lives? Just think, the pencil lead you use, batteries, electronics, appliances, vehicles, electrical wires, the salt on your table and the coins in your pocket and much more, all contain elements from rocks.

Ever wonder what odd things happen after hours at the museum? Ever wish you could wander the secret hallways and hidden away collection areas of the museum right before you head off to bed?

Well today is your lucky day.

For the last hour of International Museum Day, we are pulling back the curtain of the Royal BC Museum late into the night. During this special digital tour throughout the museum and behind the scenes, you are in charge. We will gather digitally as a group, and then make the plan of where to go, all while you are comfortably in your pj's at home.