Facebook Twitter Youtube
Donate

Invasive Blackberry & Ivy Removal at Ruth Johnson Park, White Rock

Thank you to everyone who participated in this woody debris & invasive plant removal!

Ada, Alan, Alexa, Alvera, Balian, Barbara, Chris, Connor, Dean, Deepanshi, Diane, Doreen, Elaine, Etsuko, Evan, Frank, Gary, Ginny, Glen, Harry, John, Joshua, Kendra, Kurtis, Madison, Niki, Nobu, Oliver, Peter, Ramazan, & William! 

CLICK HERE to see ALL PHOTOS on Flickr

Community Impacts

31 community members were engaged, contributing 98 hrs to revitalize local habitat!

  • 38% visited Ruth Johnson Park for the first time 
  • 38% removed invasive plants for the first time

25 participants completed a survey, and results showed:

  • 92% felt inspired to take future action to help the environment
  • 96% felt a sense of belonging and connection with others
  • 92% experienced a positive boost in their well-being (84% of respondents said being in nature contributed)
  • 100% increased their understanding of environmental issues
IMG_0105
55188193694_fd0cb3bc27_o
55188288638_dd7be963aa_o
IMG_0125-scaled
55188392564_2e4245da0c_o
55187052047_eb2ebdbccf_o

Environmental Impacts

Before
Before
After
After
Before
Before
After
After
Before
Before
After
After

Highlights

  • This is a new area of focus for us, building on successful stewardship we’ve done in elsewhere in the park in the past extending back more than a decade!
  • We were joined by a diverse group of participants, from long-time residents to newcomers, students to working professionals, and long-term volunteers as well as first timers! Everyone had a great time together!
  • Students from five different high schools were represented at the activity including Earl Marriott Secondary, Elgin Park Secondary, Semiahmoo Secondary, R.E. Mountain Secondary, and Langley Secondary!
  • We also removed other invasives like English (Cherry) Laurel and English Holly and found native plants like Trailing Blackberry and Oregon Grape! Participants learned how to tell these natives apart from the invasives so that these wonderful native plants can take over this space! 
  • Community members passing by thanked us for our hard work to help steward this park!
    • A special shoutout to Terri M. who stopped and offered to support future activities by bringing cookies & coffee in recognition of the hard work here!
  • We found two dumping sites of trash in the woods and removed them including a tire, a backyard composter, a wood fence section, plastic pieces, glass bottles, & plant pots! Shoutout to Glen & Alvera and Ada, Evan, & Oliver for taking these piles on! 
  • At our snack break, participants refueled with a veggie & fruit tray, yogurt passionfruit gummies, brownies, shrimp crisps, a spicy fava bean mix, healthy granola bars, juice boxes, Bubly sparkling water, and more tasty treats! 
  • Doreen & Madison, her granddaughter, came out together to spend some quality time in nature & make a difference together!
  • Shoutout to Dean who has brought friends to multiple activities in a row in both White Rock and Langley! These motivated youth have been a huge help and a great addition to our community!
  • Participants shared their favourite outdoor activities and said they enjoyed hiking, walking, birdwatching, playing volleyball, bouldering, backpacking, paddling, & of course removing invasive plants!
  • We saw 4 beautiful Anna’s Hummingbirds and heard even more checking out native plants in bloom like Red-Flowering Currant! These beautiful, resilient little birds are the only species of Hummingbird that don’t migrate and instead stay throughout the winter in the Lower Mainland!
  • Snow White visited us to participate in the activity today! Thanks for joining us Frank & Ginny!
  • Thanks to Bailin, William, & Connor for hauling many full tarps of invasive plants up the hill to our dump site at our break and the end of the day!
  • Evan & Oliver are going to use some of what they learned today to help lead a stewardship activity at their own school! All the best to an amazing activity!
  • Community members joined us from across the Lower Mainland including from White Rock itself, Surrey, Coquitlam, Langley, & Burnaby!
    • Our activities are designed to foster a sense of community that extends beyond municipal borders. By engaging community members from across the region, we are reminded that we are part of a larger, interconnected community and have a shared responsibility of creating a cleaner, healthier environment regardless of where we call home
  • Thank you to Gary & Connor for helping to direct the pack-up at the end of the activity and to the whole team that stayed to help get it done!

What Community Members Said

"This experience was one of the first steps in me building a more eco-friendly life for myself, it also felt like a step in the right direction for the future I want to pursue for myself."
MadisonLMGT Community Member
This was amazing. I felt really good removing invasive plants and learning about new things. I appreciate the opportunity to do public speaking and I enjoyed every part of it."
EvanLMGT Community Member
"It helps me feel a little better about myself to get out and help in some way, people and the environment."
ChrisLMGT Community Member
"I was surprised to see so many people so passionate for the environment, and willing to do physical work to help out. I liked how all of the volunteers' names were remembered and everyone was super friendly"
DianeLMGT Community Member
"This experience meant a lot to me because working with other people was really enjoyable and helped me build teamwork skills. Removing invasive blackberry also showed me how important it is to protect the environment. It felt good knowing we were making a positive impact together towards the community."
HarryLMGT Community Member
This experience meant a lot to me-while I am partially doing this because of a student leadership project in my Leadership class, I've been passionate about removing invasive species for probably 10 years now. I started with removing English Ivy in the back of my class in Grade 5, and catching invasive European Green Crabs on Vancouver Island with my friends. This feels like a great win-win situation that I get to remove invasive plants, have fun, hang out with my friends, work towards a school project, and get volunteer hours!
OliverLMGT Community Member
"Volunteering with the Green Team is a family activity for us. It's a great way to bond as a family and as a community while doing something positive for the community"
JoshuaLMGT Community Member
"I got to introduce my friends to the idea of volunteering at local parks to help out the community, and meet new people"
DeanLMGT Community Member
"This experience pushed me out of my comfort zone to work together with strangers and be an active member of the community. I believe that volunteering is an important part of being in a community and helps give individuals a sense of purpose. In this way, the lower main land green team fostered an environment of teamwork and interconnectedness with the environment and the community."
AlexaLMGT Community Member
"At made me feel good about myself, and I like being surrounded by positive people who like to do good in the world."
BalianLMGT Community Member
"For me, this experience was a way to both hang out with my friends and help out my local environment. I feel really accomplished that I was able to contribute to removing the three and a half tarp-fulls of invasive plant material with my two friends. We even picked up trash and found a tire caught in the dirt of a hill! Overall, I found the experience rewarding, satisfying, and enjoyable."
AdaLMGT Community Member
"It allowed me to go out of my comfort zone and try something new especially outdoors in the nature. It also let me get to know new people in the community which was really nice. Moreover, i learned something new today!"
NikiLMGT Community Member
"This experience was really insightful and educational. I learnt many facts about the environment and invasive species. I made a lot of new connections and also practiced public speaking. It was inspiring to see the results and this experience motivated me to participate in environmental initiatives more!"
DeepanshiLMGT Community Member
"Great for getting outdoors, helping out, meeting new people, helping the environment"
BarbLMGT Community Member
"It was great to do something meaningful with my Saturday morning for a change. As a baby naturalist, it's hard to know where to get started, so this opportunity was a perfect way to dip my toes, and connect with others with experience and connections to this industry. I love having a way to participate in my community, help restore ecosystems for native fauna and flora, and build practical skills. I'm looking forward to more clean ups and invasive removals in the future, and more bird related volunteering opportunities! Thank you to the team for coordinating the whole event, they were all fantastic and informative".
KendraLMGT Community Member

Check out these videos of some volunteers sharing what they enjoyed about today!

Video of Madison & Kendra, talking about the impact we made today while inspiring future positive actions!

Video of Ada, Oliver, & Evan, talking about spending time with friends making a visible difference to help this space!

Video of Dean, Diane, & Deepanshi, talking about their favourite things about these activities: making a big tangible impact, building community, & connecting with new people!

Video of Peter & Harry, talking about building a better future for this forest!

Video of Connor, speaking about chatting with new people & making a noticeable difference!

Video of Ramazan, talking about building a stronger community & helping our environment!

Community Investment Partner

THANK YOU to the City of White Rock for being a Community Investment Partner and providing the financial support and direction to make our work in White Rock possible! Special thanks to Andre, Spencer, and Ralph for their roles supporting this activity!

This activity was a great success and together we made a significant impact on the health and well-being of community members and the environment!

This was the second of eight activities we are organizing in partnership with the City of White Rock this year! We’ll be at West Beach on May 2nd removing invasive blackberry to help protect coastal habitat there! We would love for you to join us then!

In-Kind Support

A big thank you to our in-kind supporters!

Lush provided their fantastic shower gels, body conditioner, and bath bombs with natural ingredients, sustainable packaging, and made in Canada! Our participants were really happy to take these gifts home!

If you’re interested in contributing in-kind or have ideas for potential partnerships, please contact Ashton Kerr. Your support makes a difference!

55187940086_c38f8ef842_o (1)
Lush Logo
55188352450_c1e2bff4ee_o (1)

Why We Do This Work

The Lower Mainland Green Team is a program of the charity Green Teams of Canada.

We believe in the transformative power of hands-on environmental activities to empower individuals and strengthen communities.

Through initiatives like invasive plant removals, native tree & shrub plantings, and litter clean-ups, we not only foster connections among participants but also deepen their relationship with nature. Spending time outdoors has been shown to reduce stress and anxiety while enhancing mood, focus, and overall mental and physical health.

Our activities are designed to be inclusive, welcoming individuals of all backgrounds, ages, abilities, and skill levels.

What sets us apart is we attract a wide mix of young community members who may not otherwise spend time outside, igniting their passion for nature and environmental care.

We are committed to instilling an environmental ethic that leads to lasting behavior change. We aim to create a sense of belonging and connection to place, encouraging participants to recognize their ability to make a meaningful impact.

Together, we can all make a difference. Join us as we build a brighter, greener future for everyone! 

CLICK HERE to SIGN UP for upcoming activities!

GTC Staff Who Made This Activity Happen!

Lyda & Max

 

Our staff work hard to run high-quality community activities. Outreach, activity logistics, social media, reporting on impacts, partnership building, and more – they do it all!

Max Muehlen, our Lower Mainland Green Team’s Program Manager, Lyda Salatian, our Founder & Executive Director, and Simryn Dhensaw, our Lower Mainland Green Team Program Assistant, led this activity!

Ashton Kerr, the Lower Mainland Green Team’s Partnerships Manager,  supported this activity behind the scenes!

Share this Post!

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn