The Greater Victoria Green Team organized a safe and fun, eco-volunteer activity at Gulf View Park in North Saanich! We removed an area of English Ivy and Daphne, plus some antique garbage items in order to revitalize this natural area! The park has almost been completely removed of invasive plants and soon, the ivy and other invasive will be mostly out of there! We also followed careful health and safety guidelines to keep our community safe!
THANK YOU
Thank-you to everyone for participating: Aasmita, Ainsley, Al, Clark, Deanna, Devon, Elle, Emma, Helena, Izzie, Jarret (and him and Touria’s children – Amir, Sam and Sarah), Julian, Kurt, Kyla, Lisa, Matt, Mieka, Peter, Peyton, Richard, Rosanna and Touria.
Al and Jarrett (and his wife and kids) are the members of the Friends of North Saanich Parks and have, single handily and with help from others who are part of the Friends group, removed most of the invasive plants from the park! We love helping them as they work so hard on their own!
Thank-you very much to the District of North Saanich for partnering with us and contributing to our Green Team activities in your municipality and for recognizing the importance of collaboration in community engagement and ecological restoration!
Morning Session
Afternoon Session
PHOTO ALBUM FROM THE EVENT IS FOUND HERE (morning session) AND HERE (afternoon session)
Highlights
- In total, over 2 short sessions, 29 volunteers participated and contributed 52 volunteer hours
- 15 of our GVGT volunteers had never been to Gulf View Park before, while 6 had never removed English Ivy before!
- We removed 11 cubic metres of invasive plants from an area measuring approximately 200 square metres!
Before and After
Volunteer Quotes
Gets people into green spaces which is crucial to mental, physical and social health. Incentive to better protect the environment and that one person can make a difference. Supports commitment to one’s community and to volunteering as a whole (not just environmentally). Increased physical activity in a ‘gentle’ way
It’s so satisfying to see the difference a group of people can make. The other volunteers were friendly and fun to be around.
Aside from the ivy removal, people from Greater Victoria (Green Team) are introduced to different parks. Everyone who attended will remember this park every time they drive by; good memories.
Working as a group allowed us to make an immediate and noticable impact that made me want to return to help again. I appreciate that the program made it simple and easy to come out and help. Having a safe, organized way to help the local environment is why not for profits like this one are so essential, thank you. In addition to helping the local environment, this weekend really helped my mental health too – best I’ve felt in months!
Volunteers in Action (Morning Session)
Volunteers in Action (Afternoon Session)
