Thank you to the Grade 3, 4, and 5 students from Langley Meadows Community School and R. C. Garnett Elementary who participated in this invasive blackberry removal!
Ms. Powell’s Class: Dawson, Owen, Evelyn, Eleanor, Addison, Caleb, Nigel, Cecilia, Ollie, Elliotte, Sivan, Weston, Savannah, Cameron, Kayla, Alvero, Eva, Rielle, Brynn, & Kyara
Ms. Stephenson’s Class: Genevieve, Brooklyn, Laila, Sahana, Noah, Emmanuel, Ellie, Camden, Brayleigh, Alice, Loui, Rainer, Matvey, Devyani, Ethan, Arham, Zaheer, Lilia, Olivia, Mehdi, Ryan, Alex, Khanya, Daniel, & Sean
Ms. Wells’ Class: Alyssa, Rinoa, Hunter, Aarya, Daniil, Tony, Abi, Kian, Carmen, Lennon, Jayven, Carl, Arya, Zephra, Alain, Alex, Ariana, Austin, Makenna, Jayla, Arad, Nixon, & Jasper
A thank you to Ms. Powell, Ms. Wells, and Ms. Stephenson for engaging their students!
It was a beautiful day and Grade 3, 4, & 5 students made a big impact on Meadows Edge Park!
Impacts
- 68 Grade 3 – 5 students from R.C. Garnett Elementary School and Langley Meadows Community School were engaged!
- 24 students removed invasive plants for the first time
- 17 students visited Meadows Edge Park for the first time
- 3 teachers (Ms. Stephenson, Ms. Powell, and Ms. Wells) brought their classes.
- 2 parents and 1 community member jumped in to help out today!
- 102 hours were contributed towards revitalizing local habitat!
- 2.75 cubic metres (17 bathtubs) of invasive Himalayan blackberry was removed
- 27.5 square metres of habitat revitalized!
Highlights
- The teachers & all the students got some extra healthy exercise walking to this activity!
- Thanks to coordination with Ms. Stephenson, Ms. Powell, and Ms. Wells, students participated in this hands-on environmental activity and learned how to support biodiversity!
- This hands-on, experiential approach not only educated students about invasive species but also instilled a sense of responsibility towards their local environment, empowered them, & created lasting memories
- Students worked together as teams to tackle these plants!
- Thomas & Charn from the Township of Langley helped clean up all the plants we removed, encouraged the kids, and helped with the most stubborn roots!
- Ms. Stephenson’s class also worked with us last Fall at James Anderson Park! They had so much fun they came out to help again to deepen their learning and continue their impact. Some of them even came back with their families to join some of our community activities here outside of their school!
- After their hard work, students enjoyed some tasty juice and granola bars with an extra snack prize going to the group who brought the biggest root!
- We built on the work of a community event here last weekend to amplify the impact on this park and we began our work in this park way back in 2023!
- A shoutout to community member Kevin who saw the great work unfolding and volunteered to jump in and tackle a tougher section of the park!
- Thanks also to Ariana and Arya for helping set up snacks in our second session!
What Participants Said
Community Investment Partner
We sincerely thank the Township of Langley for their guidance and financial support, which have made a significant impact on both our youth and the environment!
BIG thank you to Ryan, Tovery, Thomas, and Charn.
Together we are creating opportunities for youth and community members to come together, connect with each other and nature, and take care of the environment.
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, tree 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!
Staff Who Made This Activity Happen!
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!
Ashton Kerr, the Lower Mainland Green Team’s Partnerships Manager led this event with support from Max Muehlen, our Lower Mainland Green Team’s Program Manager and from Lyda Salatian, our Founder and Executive Director who works hard behind the scenes as a key part of making these activities happen!