Notes from Last Year:
A Splashing Success!
2023 marked the 21st Anniversary of the Peterborough Children’s Water Festival (PCWF) and our triumphant return to a LIVE festival at the Peterborough Riverview Park and Zoo on May 30th and 31st.
Over 1300 students in grades 2 to 5 from 24 local schools attended the festival, chaperoned by 311 teachers and parents. In 2002, the PCWF took root and to date 30,388 elementary students and 6,684 teachers and parent helpers have attended the Peterborough Children’s Water Festival to celebrate water and their relationship with it.
Volunteers from our partner organizations, community, and local high schools are essential to the success of the PCWF. Each year volunteers dedicate their time, energy and skills to the PCWF and to the water related messages that we share. In 2019 the festival continued to welcome many volunteers returning to the Festival ready to share water messages they once experienced at the PCWF as young students. This year we also welcomed volunteers from 11 community organizations and five local high schools. Overall, 120 high school students worked at 36 activity centres to deliver water related messages, and over 50 community volunteers helped to ensure things ran smoothly – that’s more than 1500 hours of volunteer time over two days!
Thank you Nogojiwanong for your support of Water Education!
"The Water Festival was an amazing day of learning all about water and the importance of conservation. I’ve been attending for years now and it’s always a great day filled with great hands on learning opportunities for the students!"
- JP Chénier, Teacher
"In addition to the practical knowledge that students obtained from presentations, I believe the variety of speakers provided the opportunity for students to hear from others who have a passion for water. These experts presented many different aspects of the importance of water. This is valuable because students don't always get to hear from people who are truly passionate about a cause; this can be the spark to ignite their own passions, and if not a career with water, they see modelled how people make careers of passions."
- Tanya Hunter, Roseneath Public School
About Us
The Peterborough Children's Water Festival (PCWF) is a community event for children in Grade 2 to 5. The PCWF provides students with the opportunity to discover the importance and diversity of water.
The PCWF works in partnership with educators, water quality and quantity specialists, community volunteers, conservation groups, industry and government to create a festival full of activities that are educational and fun for children in grades 2 to 5.
Check out the Highlights from our many years of Water Education!
Thanks to our Supporters!
Festival Supporters - $5,000+
Festival Patron - $2,500-$4,999
Festival Benefactor - $1,000-$2,499
Festival Friend - < $1,000
Grant and Emma Murphy
Herb Lang Drilling
Township of Selwyn
Wayne Stiver
In Kind Sponsorship
City of Peterborough
GreenUP
Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board
Otonabee Conservation
Peterborough Utilities Group
Peterborough Victoria Northumberland and Clarington Catholic District School Board
Riverview Park and Zoo
TRACKS
Trent University
We are enormously grateful for the financial and in-kind contributions of local sponsors that support our in-person festival!
Thank you to past and present sponsors who have supported immersive water education! We're thinking of all of you in these unprecedented times!