For the final project of our Grade 10 PLP class, we wanted to give back to our community and show our support and thanks to impact makers in North Vancouver. Our job was to create a portrait and write up of an impact maker in our local. In my case, North Vancouver. The driving question for this project was “What makes an impact maker?”

The impact maker that I chose was IFHT, they’re a locally based mountain bike, ski, hike YouTube channel. The reason I chose IFHT is because I have a very close connection to the activities surrounding their channel. As a mountain biker, skier, climber, and hiker. I have enjoyed the North Shore’s wonders my entire life. I wanted to discover the impact makers and change makers of the North Shore, displaying it’s activities to the world. Through this, I found IFHT.

Not only do I have a connection through the channels content, their views also align with mine. This brings us into their impact onto the North Shore. Both the Mahalo my Dude, and IFHT channel founded by Matt Dennison and Jason Lucas have impacted the North Shore greatly. Through their entertaining YouTube films and videos, they have showcased North Vancouvers natural wonders. Within these videos, comes the advocation for preservation of our environment. IFHT wants people to discover fun in the natural North Vancouver environment, and through this, preserve it.

Now with an impact maker, I had to create a portrait that reflects the impact that IFHT made. As a kinaesthetic learner who enjoys working with my hands. I decided I wanted to create something physical. I ended up with the idea to create a portrait using all natural materials. In the photo below, you can see Matt Dennison. One of the founders of the IFHT channel. The materials I used were sand, rocks, grass, soil, leaves, and clay. The use of natural materials conveys IFHT’s connection to the natural world and shows their impact on the North Shore.

So what did I learn from this project? I learned about what makes an impact maker. I learned how impact makers change, and shape our world. I learned how without impact makers and their radical ideas, it would be hard for the human race to progress forward. I demonstrated this learning through my portrait, choice of impact maker, and reasoning towards how IFHT has impacted our community.

One of the assignments in this project I found really meaningful was watching Erin Brockovich, which we watched throughout the entirety of the project. As we watched the film, we periodically made slides about sections of the movie we watched. Then at the end, we’d present the slideshow. I found this meaningful as we could see the progression of our thoughts on the movie as we watched each section. Watching Erin Brockovich also was very important in the learning of this project as we could find what we wanted to look for in our impact maker and what a good impact maker could look like.

Through my learning, demonstration and creation I’ve been able to formulate an answer to the driving question.

An impact maker is someone who isn’t afraid of social norms, thinks outside of the box, and most of all, whether big or small, makes an impactful change in their community.