Toronto Nature Stewards

Toronto Nature Stewards is a community based organization that evolved out of the urgent need to help restore the beautiful ravine and park systems in Toronto. Toronto is blessed with green spaces/ravines across the city. They are critical for keeping the air clean, absorb rain water, capture particulate matters from the air and support thousands of species of wildlife from microbes to larger mammals and birds, thus supporting biodiversity in the city.

Despite the critical importance of these ravines, their health is in danger from the rampant spread of invasive plant species from across the world. These invasive species, as the name suggests, are invading our green spaces, backyards and roadsides. With their uncontrolled spread across the city, region and the province, they are threatening native species of plants and wildlife. Climate change is adding even more urgency for this work to be done at an even faster pace involving as many people as we can.

Toronto Nature Stewards works with approvals from the city of Toronto on approved ravine and park sites to help restore the ecosystem within those sites through long term stewardship. Long term, ongoing stewardship year over year is critical for the success of our goal. We do this by recruiting and educating volunteers (stewards) to remove various invasive species that we have city’s permission to remove and strategically replanting native species back into this site so that one day the native species population can revive the health of the ecosystem by restoring the biodiversity in our urban landscapes. By doing so, we hope to build strong bonds of acknowledgement, appreciation and caretaking between the community members and our green spaces.

High school kids can get the volunteer hours from this activity.

Dates: June 4, 11, and 18th

Cost: $5 per family to be given back to the Toronto Nature Stewards to buy equipment needed for students and volunteers to use.

Time: Sundays 5-7 pm

Location: 701 Don Mills Road