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HAPPY INTERNATIONAL YEAR OF BIODIVERSITY! Come celebrate with us.
BurlingtonGreen is celebrating 2010 International Year of Biological Diversity! We have signed the Countdown 2010 Declaration to Save Biodiversity and submitted our own Declaration, including a series of awareness, advocacy, and action commitments. Read more about biodiversity in our Spring and Summer Newsletters, and keep an eye out for chances to celebrate locally throughout the year.
What's biodiversity, you ask? Introduce yourself to the Web of Life with this light-hearted animated "Da Vinci Code" parody:
Digital design students at the Vancouver Film School recently published a cool video on biodiversity and its importance for human health and well-being.
Get indepth with this video from TED - Ideas Worth Spreading. Speaker Jason Clay presents How Big Brands Can Help Save Biodiversity. If you liked Food Inc, you'll enjoy this important message.
Local biodiversity events include:
The BurlingtonGreen Stewardship Series!
We host or support a variety of stewardship events in Burlington, from invasive species removal, to cleanups, native species plantings, and more. We supply gloves, sunscreen and refreshments, all you need is a re-usable water bottle and some energy. Visit our facebook or calendar page to find out more about upcoming Saturday opportunities to get involved.
What we've been up to lately:
During May and June we removed invasive Garlic Mustard plant species from some of Burlington's natural areas in an effort to restore local biodiversity.
Garlic Mustard is a cool-season, biennial (i.e. two-year growth cycle) herb with stalked, triangular to heartshaped, coarsely toothed leaves that give off an odor of garlic when crushed (particularly new leaves). First-year plants appear only as a cluster of green leaves close to the ground.
The Threat: Its ability to grow in low light, high seed production, and relatively rapid spread make Garlic Mustard a strong competitor, dominating forest groundcover within 5-7 years of introduction. It takes resources away from native spring woodland plants such as Spring Beauty, White Trillium, Trout Lily, Sweet Cicelyand many others. Because it begins growing very early in the spring, Garlic Mustard has a head start on other flowering plants and tree seedlings.
Management Efforts: Garlic Mustard spreads from established (core) infestations along an invasion front. Satellite infestations occur when seeds are transported to new areas. This often occurs along trails, roads or forest edges. Priority should be given to annual removal of all satellite infestations to prevent further spread.
In addition, satellite areas and invasion fronts nearest to or within prime native habitat should have top priority. After these areas are treated, begin working back through the invasion front.
During July we hosted a beach cleanup, and native tallgrass prairie planting with the RBG. Throughout August we are supporting marsh planting events hosted by BARC and RBG.
The BurlingtonGreen Stewardship Series is a great opportunity to really help the environment, have some fun and make new connections with BurlingtonGreen volunteers. To learn more, contact Kale here or call at 905-407-0486
Past events
 Conservation Halton is offering two great days of exploration and discovery in honour of the 2010 International Year of Biodiversity.
BioBlitz Fun Day - June 19, 2010, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Visit Hilton Falls Conservation Area and enjoy themed guided hikes, guest speakers, birds of prey demonstrations, family activities, a BBQ lunch and much more. Contact:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
, 905-336-1158 ext. 284 | Registration closes on June 11th 2010
BioBlitz Naturalist Challenge - June 19-20, 2010
Also at Hilton Falls, you are invited to participate in Conservation Halton's first BioBlitz Naturalist Challenge! Put together a team or sign up individually and identify all that you can over the two days. Prizes for biggest species list, rarest bird and more. Specialized hikes and demonstrations on dragonflies/damselflies, bat mist netting and others will be available for participants to take part in.
Contact:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
, 905-336-1158 ext. 305 | Registration closes on June 11th 2010
For more on both these events and more opportunities at Conservation Halton, visit their website here.
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Join the Green Wave in 2010! The Green Wave celebrates International Biodiversity Day, and is an important awareness project by the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity. Since 2008, students, schools, organizations, governments, and businesses have been planting trees on or near May 22nd. Burlington had its first Green Wave planting in 2009, at the Canada Centre for Inland Waters. |
More information:
BEAN is a working group of the Ontario Biodiversity Council which coordinates our province's work on Biological Diversity. Check out the OBC's informative video, Our World, Ontario:
Environment Canada invites you to get involved in 2010 celebrations too: visit the Canadian Biodiversity Information Network's 2010 web site to learn about important work being done nationwide, and share YOUR story!
Canada hosts the offices of the Secretariat of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity in Montreal, Quebec. Visit the Convention's 2010 International Year of Biodiversity website to learn more about biodiversity worldwide.
Okay, done reading! It's time to protect, restore, and sustainably use the biological diversity around us in Burlington. Let's get busy!
Biodiversity news:
"Traditional aboriginal knowledge is critical to conservation" - By David Suzuki with Faisal Moola
"Trans Canada Trail is proud to partner with Environment Canada in promoting’s International Year of Biodiversity 2010 (IYB) to bring attention to the richness of our natural world that can be explored along the Trans Canada Trail.
Ontario’s Biodiversity Crisis: Time for Action
Check out the "Biodiversity Best Practices Handbook - 2009".
Biodiversity website for kids !
Biodiversity, Development and Poverty Alleviation Recognizing the Role of Biodiversity for Human Well-being
Take Action in 2010 and beyond, because ...
Biodiversity is life
Biodiversity is our life
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