How Plants Work

About Christiane Dorion

Christiane Dorion is an award-winning author and educational consultant. She has written a number of children’s books about the natural world and has worked with WWF and other environmental organisations for over 30 years.

On scooping the Best Book with Facts Award at the Blue Peter Book Awards 2022 Christiane said:  'I am thrilled to win the Blue Peter Book Award amongst so many fantastic books. The fact that it is judged by children makes it even more special, as they are the best critics. I would say to children, read about what you enjoy. Whether it’s stepping into an imaginary world of wizards or learning all about amazing creatures or tropical jungles, books help us to understand the world around us and stimulate our curiosity and imagination. They can be funny, informative and inspiring. If you find books daunting, you don’t have to read it from beginning to end in one go. You can dip in and out, look at the pictures and go for the bits of text you find most interesting.'

"I was born in a beautiful part of the world, Quebec City, Canada. From a very young age, I was passionate about the environment and writing books for children has always been my dream. I studied geography at university and then completed a Masters Degree in Education. For four years, I lectured at Laval University, working with primary schools and introducing teacher trainees to geography and environmental issues. In 1987, I obtained a scholarship to carry out a PhD in environmental education in the UK and England became my new home. When I completed my PhD, the National Curriculum was being developed for schools in England and Wales and I was asked to contribute to the guidelines for environmental education. For eight years, I coordinated the Primary Education programme at WWF-UK, producing educational resources and working with schools to implement environmental education. In 2002, I left WWF and became an educational consultant and writer. I currently work with Forum for the Future, a non- profit organisation with a mission to promote sustainable development with business and the public sector. My main role is to assess and to help with the ongoing development of the Masters programme on Leadership for Sustainable Development.

"My passion for writing children’s books stems from the thousands of questions I asked as a child, which remained, unanswered. How big is the universe? When did life begin? Why do volcanoes erupt? Why do we build cities around active volcanoes? Why isn’t there water everywhere around the world? Through my books, I aim to inspire and encourage children to explore the complex systems of the world we live in and to take positive actions to protect our planet for future generations. I am particularly interested in how we can learn to design and make things in a different way so we can use the earth’s resources more wisely and reduce the amount of waste we produce. I am also very interested in how we can learn from nature and our fellow creatures to turn waste into precious resources."

(Biography taken from the author's website - click here to visit.)