This activity was organized in partnership with the Town of View Royal
Thank you to all of the community members who joined us!
Alexandra, Bob, Cathy, Charles, Chloe, Claire, Clare, Darling, Dominic, Ethan, Hallie, Henry, Ida, Ignacio, Jenna, Jing Ru, John, Marco, Mark, Maxine, Merryl, Nancy, Robert, Samantha, Sophie, Summer, Sydney, Tony, Tristan, Vincent
Community Impacts
30 community members were engaged, contributing 90 hrs to environmental action!
- 57% visited Knockan Hill Park for the first time
- 33% removed invasive plants for the first time
19 participants completed a survey, and results showed:
- 100% 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
- 100% said helping the environment contributed
- 95% increased their understanding of environmental issues
- 89% gained practical knowledge (e.g. impacts of invasive species)
- 95% 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 Himalayan blackberry and Periwinkle were removed (equivalent to the volume of 56 bathtubs!)
- 106 square metres of habitat revitalized!
Highlights
- Community members joined us from across Greater Victoria including from View Royal itself, as well as Esquimalt, Victoria, Saanich, Colwood, Oak Bay, Langford, Brentwood Bay, and Saanichton!
- 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 featured in boring news:
- Read the feature HERE
- Community members explored Knockan Hill Park while learning about its natural and cultural history, including Garry oak meadow habitats, forested trails, and the area’s long history of stewardship and restoration.
- Participants learned how the landscape has changed over time and how ongoing restoration efforts support native plants and species of ecological and cultural importance.
- A “treasure pile” of found objects such as an old clock, statue, and pen holder sparked reflection on how human activity connects to the park’s past and present use.
- A passerby stopped to share knowledge about a family of owls living in the trees above the work site, noting they would likely be grateful for the community’s efforts to care for the area.
- Volunteers enjoyed several fun wildlife moments during the work, including sightings of lizards along the trails, adding a light and engaging touch to the restoration activities.
- A jug discovered on site, unexpectedly filled with beetles, became a memorable wildlife moment and sparked curiosity among participants about the small ecosystems present within the park.
- Many delicious snacks were enjoyed during our snack break, including carrots, grapes, granola bars, red velvet cookie bites, donuts, chocolate muffins, fruit leather, and more!
- Special thank you to:
- Chris, View Royal’s Habitat Restoration Coordinator, for helping with setup and overseeing the activity.
- Dom for supporting the snack break set-up and helping keep everyone fueled and energized during the activity.
- Ethan for helping with pack-up and making sure everything was wrapped up smoothly 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 GVGTers and newcomers!
- We’ve been working at Knockan Hill Park since 2019! Check out past activities below:
What Community Members Said
11 participants shared what this activity meant to them:
Video of Dom, speaking about how nice it is to be outside with friends
Video of Sydney, speaking about how it is nice to get outside and help the environment.
Video of Summer, speaking about helping the trees and spending time with her family.
Community Investment Partner
Delivered in partnership with The Town of View Royal, our Community Investment Partner.
Green Teams of Canada and View Royal are working together to achieve our shared environmental and community objectives.
View Royal 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 town to build connection, improve well-being, and create lasting environmental and community impact.
Special thanks to View Royal staff Chris for their valued contributions in bringing this activity to life.
This was 6 of 11 activities we’re organizing together for the 2025-2026 year.
In-Kind Support
Thank you to the following businesses for providing in-kind to support this activity:
- Lush for providing their bath bombs with natural ingredients, sustainable packaging, and made in Canada!
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 Sara Schwartz, our Greater Victoria Green Team’s Program Manager.
We Are All In This TOGETHER! The Future Depends on Us
The Greater Victoria Green Team is a program of the charity Green Teams of Canada, engaging communities in hands-on environmental action since 2014.
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!