The Camp Kawartha Environment Centre has announced its lineup of events for the month of March.

Sustainable design consultant Melanie Scott is holding a workshop on passive solar design March 13 from 1 to 3 p.m. Topics include insulation and landscaping strategies, window and site selection, building orientation and renovation design concepts.

There’s a suggested donation fee of $5 per person upon entry to the workshop.

Alicia Zobel is talking about local plants and their uses March 18 from 7 to 8:30 p.m. There’s no fee to attend, but people are encouraged to bring a donation of a non-perishable food item for Kawartha Food Share.

Following the success of the sustainable building and design program, Fleming College is launching a new program geared at the future’s green tradespeople.

The new sustainable renovations program will begin in September, said academic vice-president Blane Harvey.

“We’re really excited about this,” he said. “The sustainable building program was a real winner with students. We’re constantly wait-listed for the program.”

The new program is answering the industry’s need for skilled graduates trained in current and emerging green technologies, Harvey said.

The 16-week intensive program offers students a hands-on education of the entire renovation process, from applying for permits and reading contacts to learning different building techniques that will leave less of an impact on the environment, he said.

This month Camp Kawartha will host three environmental education events as part of an ongoing series. The sessions take place at their new environmental centre at 2505 Pioneer Rd., between Armour Rd. and Trent University.

If you’re interested in disappearing woodlands, join Michael Henry Feb. 11 from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m. as he talks about ancient trees and old growth forests in Ontario.

Highlights of Henry’s photo essay include a 460- year-old tree found outside Peterborough in Mark S. Burnham Provincial Park and a 1,300-year-old eastern white cedar on the Niagara Escarpment. The event is capped by a book signing by Henry.

It’s a dream Jacob Rodenburg, executive director of Camp Kawartha, has had for five years.

Yesterday that dream became a reality with the official opening of Camp Kawartha Environment Centre.

Located on Trent University property, built by students at Fleming College and fuelled by community donations, including $100,000 from the Gainey Foundation, the building is one of the greenest buildings in the nation.