Joint venture by women-led businesses aims to rapidly expand access to quality child care and learning environments, addressing critical shortages. B.C.-based NUQO Modular (NUQO) and Natural Pod are pleased to announce that they are joining forces to accelerate and...
As we usher in spring, we also stand at the threshold of a new era in education. Our choices today are shaping the future of learning for generations to come. Now more than ever, it's essential that we align our values with our actions and make conscious decisions...
Curious question - it must be the great pay, easy hours and happy parents, right? Educators, you are a very special group of professionals. You don’t choose teaching to be famous or rich or even bored. You choose teaching for very altruistic reasons. Here are a few...
Imagine what your world could be like. A beautiful, calm environment. An endless variety of spaces for every kind of activity, for every kind of learner. If this is your vision, then read on because it could be within your reach. And with your funding opportunities...
Whole school sustainability has a range of meanings. As a designer or planner of built educational environments how does one deliver a successful project when creating a sustainable school or learning environment? As the Founder and CEO of Natural Pod this has been my...
Recently, on September 13th and 15th, I was able to participate in the Design for Early Learning Symposium, organized by Alissa Rupp, FAIA, LEED BD+C, Principal, FRAME | Integrative Design Strategies and Diane Kroll, Founder of Imag(e)ine Collaborative, an excellent...
Sendy, a wonderful Kindergarten teacher, is so committed to the students in her care, that over the summer she acquired a second job to personally pay for additional furniture for her classroom so that the layout could be more collaborative. That's quite amazing and...
“We should be focusing on the youngest amongst us” was a statement a friend and experienced educational building architect said to me recently, and it really stuck with me. We were discussing the importance of early learning through the lens of the learning...
We had a very special and unique opportunity to collaborate with this group of mixed grades 6 and 7 students at York House School in Vancouver, Canada, to help and support them in creating their dream learning space. The school is expanding and they will be moving...
Celebrating our earth: Holding the world in our hands - Inspired by Purpose Preschool It’s inspiring to see how our friends at Purpose Preschool in Edmonton, Canada, embraced Earth Day, focusing on learning practical ways children can care for their environment and...
We spend ninety percent of our lives indoors in environments where we live, learn, and work. In some countries, that number is even higher due to extreme climate and outdoor pollution. If we spend ninety percent of our time indoors, that means that by the time our...
It’s not often that books in the field of education and design crossover in such an accessible way, and that speak directly to the truth and the times we find ourselves in. 'Schools That Heal: Design with Mental Health in Mind' by Claire Latané is one of those...
Only two weeks ago my team completed Natural Pod’s first Indigenous Learners Ideabook, and I couldn’t be more pleased. It’s been a while in the making and the end result allows us to share some fantastic Indigenous learning spaces, the stories behind them and why as a...
Alongside connecting with passionate folks within the green schools movement a couple of weeks ago at the Green Schools Conference, we were also introduced to the Green Schools National Network's (GSNN) brand new look and extended mission. Both intended to drive...
If you have ever gone on a whale-watching excursion or watched videos of a whale in its natural habitat, you probably saw the whale surface for a short time and dive underwater, where it moves about for an extended time before resurfacing. The health of the ocean is...
We are often building and creating spaces for an audience we rarely interact with. Even scarier, we are often building based on our own experiences, some of which we had 10, 20, or dare I say 40 years ago. A few things have changed a wee bit since then. So, how...
Natural Pod™ LIVE Episode Six is available to watch! If you are in any way connected to educational architecture, design or planning, this episode with Kate Mraw, Design Director at LPA Design Studios (LPA), is an absolute must watch! Kate shares so much insight...
With our virtual bags packed, my colleague Kelly Rosensweet and myself have headed to the Green Schools Conference along with the Green Schools National Network team. The conference is taking place today and tomorrow - June 28th & 29th, both as half days. After a...
This year Natural Pod is teaming up with Green Schools National Network and heading to the Green Schools Conference! It's taking place virtually over two half days on June 28 and 29th, and there are some fantastic speakers, events and interactive sessions lined up....
It’s exciting that many schools will welcome students back to campuses soon, but it’s putting a lot of pressure on educators and administrators to make decisions very fast, not only for the end of this school year but the beginning of the next as well. We understand...