The Greater Victoria Green Team organized the first volunteer activity of 2019 in Mystic Vale at the University of Victoria! Almost 50 volunteers spent the morning removing English Ivy, Holly and a bit of Daphne from the riparian habitat in the woods!
Thank-you to everyone who participated: Abby, Abi, Abigail, Alex, Alexandra, Alfred, Alistair, Anastasia, Andre, Andrea, Barbara, Breila, Brenna, Brian, Brittany, Carina, Charlotte, Christie, Colin, Conway, Dana, Darrin, Eban, Emma, Ethan, Genie, Hannah, Janey, Jasper, Jayde, Johnson, Kai, Kaylie, Khea, Lucas, Martin, Mattanyu, Matthew, Paige, Peter, Samara, Sarah, Shreena, Sophia, Spencer, Theresa, Zachary and Ziyi.
Thank you to the Ecological Restoration Volunteer Network who helped spread the word about the event! If you want to join the ERVN, head to their FACEBOOK PAGE HERE
Thank you very much to the University of Victoria Campus Planning and Sustainability Office for funding this activity and other Green Team volunteer activities in Mystic Vale this year!
Thank you to our in-kind sponsors for providing thank you gifts to our volunteers: LUSH Cosmetics for providing great bath items, Camino Chocolate for providing chocolate. Plus our granola bars were donated by the awesome Nature’s Path
PHOTO ALBUM FROM THE EVENT IS FOUND HERE
Highlights
- 48 GVGT volunteers participated and contributed 150 volunteer hours
- 24 volunteers had never been to Mystic Vale before
- 29 of the volunteers were introduced to removing English Ivy
- We removed approximately 20 cubic metres of invasive plants and revitalized an area measuring approx. 450 square metres.
- We had 38 UVic students attend, and many of them walked over from the residence building!
What volunteers said about their experience
With everybody working together, it’s easy to make significant change in the community, so the impact of programs that bring people together is limitless.
I felt very accomplished seeing just how much ivy we could pull in such a short amount of time.
It gives people a sense of accomplishment. Our climate issue can feel daunting and scary, but this can help ya feel more like we are part of the change!
I loved being able to give back. I got to meet a lot of new people, while helping the environment.
I feel the impact of this group is positive education to others about invasive species as well as pulling the invasive species themselves which helps the environment/plants in the ecosystem. I enjoyed speaking with people with the same interests as me, as well as pulling the ivy and holly as I felt my time was used for a greater cause (helping the environment).
Before and After photos
Volunteers in Action
