Thank you to Ms. Vink’s Life Science class: Bronwyn, Eloise, Harlyn, Gabrielle, Silas, Angelo, Sophia, Jacob, Carter, Kaid, Gabrielle, Regina, Natalie, Addy, Wyatt, Ellie, Matthew, Dren, Takumi, Devin, & Danika!
Thank you to Ms. Funk’s Environmental Science class: Maverick, Daniel, Logan, Lyric, Avery, Kaylee, Maya, Kaedyn, Alyssa, Christian, Evan, Noah, Liv, Aidan, Gucci, Ryan, Kaiden, Kalen, and Kaoruko!
Thank you to Ms. Funk’s Environmental Science class: Pao, Daniel, Koen, Zoe, Makayla, Maya, Leah, Nieke, Shaely, Landon, Jacob, Ava, and Zachary!
Thank you to Mr. Steadman’s Life Science class: Ava, Guilherme, Rachel, Elijah, Livvy, Mariam, Owen, Dante, Clara, Erik, Felix, Lina, Jaden, Beth, Zubin, and Kaoruko!
Thank you students and teachers! We had a great time together making a positive impact at Murray’s Pond Park, right behind the secondary school.
Impacts
- 69 students and 3 teachers were engaged in this activity
- 90 hours were contributed towards restoring local habitat
- 5 cubic metres (31 bathtubs) of invasive Himalayan blackberry and Scotch Broom were removed
- Approximately 170 square metres of habitat revitalized
Highlights
- We had a great day working together to improve the habitat and increase biodiversity in this park located in the heart of Royal Bay, right behind the secondary school!
- Our activity included two sessions, and engaged a total of four classes, full of dedicated students & teachers!
- It was a bright and sunny day: a perfect day to be outside in nature! Not too hot but still plenty of clear sky to go around!
- Murray’s Pond Park has undergone enhancements with the development of the Royal Bay neighbourhood and features a beautiful walking trail and viewing platform. The pond in the park was created many years ago from a piece of melted glacier. You can learn more about this park and the pond on the City of Colwood’s website here
- At the end of each session, students enjoyed juice boxes, & gummy candies.
- We built on our previous work at this park! Check out previous summaries from our activities earlier this year working with many different classes of Royal Bay Secondary School students and members of the community: May 28, 2025, June 15, 2025, October 27 2024, Oct 9 2024, Sept 25 2024, and July 7 2024.
- Students learned about the importance of ongoing ecological restoration through seeing the slow transformation of this area over time from repeated invasive plant removals in this area.
- Passerby Colleen, a local resident, took some photos for us and was excited about what we were doing.
- Students got to learn how to use the Pullerbear root wrench and experience pulling out some massive Scotch Broom roots with it!
- Makayla, one of the students, recently completed a project on Scotch Broom and was excited to apply her knowledge in a hands-on way.
- Vice Principal Michelle Bond came by and thanked us for our work and offered her support.
What Students and Teachers Said
Mikayla talking about how she got to apply knowledge from a project in a hands-on way
Zubin talking about how this activity helps the climate
Mr. Barbin talking about how impactful this activity was for students’ education and how important it is to show them that they can fight environmental issues first hand.
Community Investment Partner & Sponsor
We sincerely thank our sponsor, PATH Developments for their financial support, which have made a significant impact on both our community members and the environment!
Through this sponsorship we have been able to host additional activities in the Royal Bay area of Colwood, increasing community engagement & education and improving the health of the greenspaces in Royal Bay!
We sincerely thank the City of Colwood for their ecological expertise and guidance for this activity.
Together we are creating opportunities for community members to come together, connect with each other and nature, and take care of the environment!
Staff Who Made This Activity Happen!
Our dedicated team is passionate about creating engaging, high-quality activities that foster a sense of belonging, connection to nature while raising environmental awareness. We strive to make a positive impact on our environment and to build a thriving community that cares for it.
This activity was run by Green Teams of Canada’s Founder and Executive Director, Lyda, and Greater Victoria Green Team Program Assistant, Nicola.
Partnerships Manager, Kaitlin Warren, supported this activity behind the scenes.
