2018 Ontario Climate Symposium
Help My Garden; Help the Environment; Help Build More Rain Gardens
Back to the 2018 Ontario Climate Symposium Program
Friday, October 12, 2018
9:30 to 11:30 am
Meeting Point: outside the turnstiles/Presto exit doors of Coxwell subway station. Leaving 9:30 am sharp. | Map and Directions
Presented by Rain Gardens United
Marc Yamaguchi and Mina Wong from Rain Gardens United offer this walkabout for guests keen on seeing the rain gardens of Beaches-East York up close. Guests will also note the freshly laid Earthwatch soil/water sensors in many of the rain gardens that will assess their functionality as green infrastructure.
This easy-paced, two-hour tour will allows guests to rejoin the symposium’s closing events downtown closing. Dress according to weather conditions — and don’t forget your water bottle!
Tour Map
Tour Guides
Marc Yamaguchi
Marc Yamaguchi, MAEEC is a college teacher, but began doing outdoor interventions in 2013 as a volunteer with the David Suzuki Foundation. In 2015, he headed up the East Danforth Rain Gardens Project, which has grown from an initial 11 to 31 today. Marc’s Masters thesis in Environmental Education and Communication is entitled Low Impact Development: Citizen Chronicles from the Urban Underground.
Mina Wong
Mina Wong is a college teacher and magazine editor. Mina’s interest in the environment dates back to activities at Toronto’s Ecology House more than 30 years ago. Inspired by rain gardeners these days, she would like to learn more about water management, bee houses, butterfly houses, rooftop gardens, seed programs and sustainable native plants.
About Rain Gardens United
The Rain Gardens United initiative was made possible by being awarded the Toronto Foundation’s 2015 Vital Innovation grant. Formerly known as the Rain Gardens of Danforth East Village – East York pilot project, we proposed a green corridor to connect Wards 29, 30, 31, and 32 with the Leslie Spit and “carpet” this part of Toronto with butterfly, bee and bird friendly habitat. Our goals include community-building, idea-sharing, and life-enhancing strategies that improve the quality of life for the citizens of Toronto. And this includes recognizing the rain gardens’ capability to protect our precious freshwater in Lake Ontario.
Acknowledgements
Rain Gardens United would like to acknowledge that the rain gardens pilot was conducted in the traditional territory of the Huron-Wendat and Petun First Nations, the Seneca, and the Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation. Toronto is still the home to many Indigenous peoples from across Turtle Island, and we are grateful to replicate the natural features that have always lent resiliency to the landscape of this territory.
Green Roofs for Healthy Cities – Green Infrastructure Week
Green Roofs for Healthy Cities promotes the mainstreaming of green roofs, green walls, and other forms of green infrastructure in cities as a way to encourage a built environment that supports human and ecosystem health. GRHC was instrumental in the creation and implementation of the Toronto Green Roof By-Law which has resulted in over 500 green roofs here in Toronto. Each year GRHC hosts a green infrastructure conference in Toronto, Grey to Green, that focuses on green infrastructure projects shaping our urban environments, new policy developments, and industry research. As a way to encourage more people to become involved in green infrastructure, GRHC hosted Ontario’s first Green Infrastructure Week to celebrate our urban forests, wetlands, parks, green roofs, green walls and rain gardens. LEARN MORE.