This activity was organized in partnership with the City of Burnaby
and in collaboration with the Cariboo Heights Forest Preservation Society
Thank you to all of the community members who joined us!
Alex, Anna, Connie, Connor, Daryl, Evan, Graham, Haozhi, Jarod, Jen, Mark, Cherise, Max, Eva, Trevor, John, Joshua, Nobu, Kathy, Kurtis, Leonard, Liam, Max, Oliver, Parth, Shirin, Sophia, Soufiane, Suzie, Thomas, Dave, Carol, Michaela, Utta, & Aruna!
Community Impacts
35 community members were engaged, contributing 108 hrs to environmental action!
- 77% visited the Cariboo Heights Forest for the first time
- 34% removed invasive plants for the first time
25 participants completed a survey, and results showed:
- 88% felt inspired to take future environmental action
- 100% felt a sense of belonging & connection to others
- 100% felt their well-being improved
- 100% said time spent in nature contributed
- 80% said meeting people contributed
- 84% said helping the environment contributed
- 84% said being physically active contributed
- 96% increased their understanding of environmental issues
- 96% learned new things (e.g. impacts of invasive species)
- 88% developed new skills (e.g. teamwork & hands-on stewardship action)
Change starts with people. To have a lasting environmental impact, people need to feel connected, capable and empowered to take action.
Our activities are designed to increase:
- Community resilience & social connection
- Well-being through time in nature
- Participation in climate & environmental action
- Awareness of environmental issues
- Connection to local places & natural areas
- A culture of volunteerism & civic engagement
Environmental Impacts
- 9 cubic metres of invasive English ivy was removed (equivalent to the volume of 56 bathtubs!)
- 250 square metres of habitat were revitalized
Highlights
- Community members joined us from across the Lower Mainland including from Burnaby itself, New Westminster, Surrey, Vancouver, Coquitlam, Port Moody, and Langley!
- Environmental & social issues don’t have borders. By bringing together people from across the region, participants see others showing up to care for places beyond their own neighbourhoods. This reminds us that we share responsibility for the people & places around us, and that we’re all in this together.
- This activity was part of the Burnaby Environment Week celebrations!
- We were excited to have the 1st Southwest Burnaby Cub Scouts join us with their leaders Jen & Mark and have a great time getting hands-on with these plants!
- We removed invasive plants to create room for the native species here to grown instead, like this Hooker’s Fairybells plant and Sword Ferns!
- We also saw and learned a bit about Common Stinkhorn, a fungi with a foul smell and a unique shape that attracts insects with its smell to spread its spores to new areas!
- Nobu helped clean up some trash we came across in the woods like these cans left behind!
- We had a local furry inspector come out to see the results of our work too!
- Many delicious snacks were enjoyed during our snack break, including fresh-baked homemade brownies, strawberry pretzels, fresh veggies & apples, caramel popcorn, yogurt granola bars, nuts, juice boxes, Bublys, and more!
- Special thank you to:
- Utta & Dave for help setting up at the beginning of the activity!
- Connor, Kurtis, Connie, & others who helped pack up at the end of the activity!
- People of all ages, backgrounds, abilities and experience levels came out including families, students, working professionals, retirees, first timers, returning LMGTers and newcomers!
- This is our 4th straight year of celebrating Environment Week at the Cariboo Heights Forest! Check out past activities below:
What Community Members Said
14 participants shared what this activity meant to them:
Video of Shirin, speaking about joining us for the first time and meeting new people, learning about the forest ecosystem here, and being active!
Video of Alex, speaking about having a great time working with other volunteers while enjoying nature and learning lots about native and invasive plants!
Community Investment Partner
Delivered in partnership with the City of Burnaby, our Community Investment Partner.
Green Teams of Canada and the City of Burnaby are working together to achieve our shared environmental and community objectives.
The City provides ecological direction, while we bring expertise in community engagement – mobilizing people to take meaningful environmental action and inspiring future stewardship.
This partnership includes financial investment from the City to build connection, improve well-being, and create lasting environmental and community impact.
Special thanks to City staff Hafsa for their valued contributions in bringing this activity to life.
This was the 2nd of 8 activities we’re organizing together this year.
Collaborator
Thank you to the Cariboo Heights Forest Preservation Society (CHFPS) for co-leading this wonderful celebration of the environment with us! Special thanks to Utta & Aruna, co-presidents, and board members Dave, Carol, Michaela, & Ashton for their roles supporting today!
CHFPS works for the preservation of this large second growth forest located south of the Brunette River. They are a diverse, fun group working on many projects to improve & protect this area!
Find out ways to get involved with this organization and give back to the community on their website here, their Facebook page here, their Instagram page here or reach out directly by e-mailing: [email protected]
In-Kind Support
Thank you to the following businesses for providing in-kind to support this activity:
- Lush for providing their bath bombs & soaps prioritizing fresh ingredients, minimal packaging & no animal testing
- Gathering Place for providing their fair-trade, organic spices sourced from sustainable farms in Canada & around the world.
When socially and environmentally conscious businesses provide in-kind rewards for our community members, it helps us encourage local and responsible consumption beyond our activities.
Businesses can also further enable us to run high-quality, safe and impactful activities by providing gift cards, refreshments, tools, gloves, and other supplies.
If you’re interested in contributing in-kind or have ideas for potential partnerships, please contact Ashton Kerr.
Staff Who Made This Activity Possible
Our dedicated staff are passionate about community engagement and environmental action. Their work includes extensive outreach, activity logistics, social media, reporting on impacts, partnership building and MUCH more!
This activity was run by Max Muehlen, our Lower Mainland Green Team’s Program Manager and Ashton Kerr, the Acting Partnerships & Programs Director
We Are All In This TOGETHER! The Future Depends on Us
The Lower Mainland Green Team is a program of the charity Green Teams of Canada, engaging communities in hands-on environmental action since 2011.
We bring people together to improve well-being and inspire environmental stewardship. Through activities like invasive plant removal, native species planting, and litter clean-ups, participants take practical action and see the impact they can make.
What sets us apart is our focus on people. Our activities are inclusive and accessible to all ages, abilities and experience levels, especially those new to environmental action. Many join for the first time, deepen their understanding of environmental issues and leave feeling capable and motivated to take future action.
We also strengthen and support the broader stewardship network by working with governmental agencies, non-profits, land trusts, volunteer-led groups, schools, and businesses, bringing new people into existing efforts and expanding their reach. Many participants go on to deepen their involvement, take on leadership roles, or contribute to other initiatives.
We believe lasting environmental change starts with people. By creating meaningful opportunities for people to take part, we help build more connected, resilient communities.
We can all make a difference!