Latest news with #DavidSuzukiFoundation
Hamilton Spectator
21-05-2025
- General
- Hamilton Spectator
Planting Change: WS Butterflyway Project Cultivates Hope for Pollinators
● WS Butterflyway Project is part of a national initiative launched by the David Suzuki Foundation in 2017. ● The organization emphasizes that aiding pollinators is essential to preserving biodiversity, food security, and ecosystem health, and that individual actions can make a meaningful impact. ● Founded in 2022, Butterflyway Rangers lead pollinator garden plantings and educational outreach in Stouffville and nearby communities. ● The group has donated canoe gardens, seed kits, and native plants to local organizations, businesses, and individuals. ● Upcoming summer events will engage the community and encourage the creation of supportive pollinator corridors. Inspired by the David Suzuki Foundation's national initiative launched in 2017, the WS Butterflyway Project is a local, volunteer-driven effort to create pollinator-friendly spaces using native plants. The goal is simple yet vital: restore habitat for bees, butterflies, and other essential pollinators, one garden at a time. Led by trained community 'Rangers,' the Butterflyway model encourages residents and their neighbours to plant native gardens, forming natural corridors for pollinators. The initiative operates on the principle that meaningful environmental change can start in one's backyard and ripple outward through community support. Bullet Point News caught up with WS Butterflyway Project co-founder Micole Rubinoff this week at the Baker Hill Community Garden. She was joined by fellow Ranger Yvonne Warner during an event with local Girl Guides, focused on pollinator education, planting, and creating bee baths. 'The girls were really interested, and they were able to get information and knowledge on native plants and the importance of pollinators,' Rubinoff said. 'They liked learning how everything is connected, how we rely on our environment, and how even small actions can help support the living things around us.' Participants were especially drawn to the concept of bee baths, which are small, shallow water sources designed to help pollinators stay hydrated. 'They loved the idea of the bee baths,' Rubinoff said. 'It wasn't something they had thought about before, so we related it to having cats and dogs—just like pets, bees and other pollinators need water too.' Another concept that resonated with the Girl Guides was the 'Three Sisters' garden, a traditional Indigenous companion planting method that combines corn, beans, and squash to support each other's growth. 'They really liked how simple and effective it was, and how it was used to sustain entire communities,' Rubinoff explained. Since launching in 2022, the WS Butterflyway Project has seen steady community growth. Repurposed canoe gardens have been donated to the Town of Stouffville and the Holy Theotokos Convent, and the team has supplied native plant starter kits to local businesses, including Moto Café, Stouffville Picture Framing, and Parkview Home. This year, volunteers are establishing new pollinator gardens at the B'MORE Sunflower Farm in Whitby and Harmony Hall in Vandorf. The team is also in discussions with the Stouffville Public Library to introduce a community seed library, where residents can borrow, grow, and return seeds—promoting gardening literacy and local biodiversity. The plantings are part of a broader series of public outreach events taking place in the months ahead: Those interested in learning more, staying updated, or contributing to pollinator efforts are encouraged to email WSbutterflyway@ . Residents can also connect with the team on their Facebook page and group , which serve as community hubs for sharing photos, planting ideas, event details, and tips on native species and pollinator health. 'Our role is to inspire and assist, and supporting pollinators is something each of us can take on in our own way,' Rubinoff said. 'We're grateful for the support we've received from the Stouffville Legacy Fund to continue these efforts, and we love seeing what others are growing and doing for pollinators.'
National Observer
01-05-2025
- Business
- National Observer
BC's emissions have barely budged, province says
BC's carbon emissions are barely budging and the province will fall far short of its climate goals, despite British Columbians reducing their emissions per person by about 20 percent through the adoption of heat pumps, electric vehicles and other climate actions. The province will emit nearly 20 million tons of more carbon emissions than its 2030 targets under existing policies, blowing through targets essential to keeping the climate crisis in check, according to the province's annual climate accountability report. Released Tuesday, the document reveals that the province's gross emissions have increased 0.2 per cent since 2007, the reference year against which reductions are measured, hitting 65.6 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents in 2022. The emissions data are from 2022, the most recent available in Canada's National Inventory Report. It comes as the province reconsiders its climate actions. This spring, BC Premier David Eby canceled the consumer carbon tax, the province has announced it will review its subsidy for EVs, and it is planning to reassess the CleanBC climate plan, which sets the province' emissions reduction targets. The numbers show these emissions held steady despite the province's GDP almost doubling and the province's population growing by a fifth during the same time frame, resulting in about 20 per cent fewer emissions per person. That's higher per capita emissions than Ontario, Quebec and PEI, but lower than the Prairies and the Atlantic provinces. About 40 per cent of the province's carbon emissions came from transportation, while the oil and gas industry accounted for nearly 15 per cent. BC residents weren't the biggest emitters, with many embracing climate action and recent polling showing widespread support for climate action. Heat pump installations soared by over 60 per cent between 2022 and 2023, according to the province's climate accountability report. In 2023 EVs made up nearly a quarter of new cars sold in the province — though recent provincial data show sales are slowing. BC's carbon emissions are barely budging and the province will fall far short of its climate goals, despite British Columbians reducing their emissions per person by about 20 percent. "I'm not that surprised we're not on target," said Thomas Green, senior climate policy advisor for the David Suzuki Foundation. The province's climate policies have taken longer to implement than initially expected, and there is typically a lag between when the policies are implemented and their impact starts to show, he said. Making them remains essential for the province's economic future. Evan Pivnik, program manager at Clean Energy Canada highlighted in a statement that 10 of Canada's largest non-US trading partners have net-zero commitments and carbon pricing — and border fees on products that don't meet similar standards. Still, experts highlight that no matter what measures the province takes to reduce emissions from buildings, transportation and other sources, many of those hard-won emissions reductions could be canceled out by the province's push to build up an LNG industry in northern BC. LNG "is certainly the elephant in the room," said John Young, LNG senior strategist for Climate Action Network. "Whenever you're talking about climate in British Columbia or climate in Canada, LNG needs to be part of the conversation in ways that it often hasn't been." If all six LNG projects proposed in the province are built, their operational and upstream emissions alone would make up about 40 per cent of the emissions allowed under the province's 2030 goals. The emissions generated when that fuel is burned would be about 10 times higher, harming global efforts to fight the climate crisis. Government officials know that supporting the LNG industry will send the province blowing through its climate goals, but have decided the financial returns are worth the devastating climate impacts of exploiting those reserves, Young said. "There's no way to dress it up. If you build new fossil fuel projects, you're not going to meet your climate targets. That's not, that's not rocket science. That's climate science."
CBC
09-04-2025
- General
- CBC
'Sign of hope' for endangered killer whales as research centre confirms newborn calf
The Centre for Whale Research says one of its field biologists has spotted a new calf in a pod of endangered killer whales off British Columbia's southern coast. The Washington-based centre says in a Facebook post that biologist Mark Malleson encountered J-pod, part of the larger population of southern resident killer whales, as the orcas swam past Victoria Harbour on Sunday. The centre says he observed and documented a newborn calf swimming alongside a whale known as J40, and it's thought to be her first calf. The latest calf is the fourth born among the southern residents over the past year, with the centre saying it's "a sign of hope for this endangered community." Based on the initial observations, it says there are "no immediate concerns" for the calf now dubbed J63, but the first year of life is often challenging for young whales. Confirmation of the birth comes less than two months after researchers with the centre spotted a newborn calf in February, closely following the death of another. At the time, the centre said it had confirmed that J35, or Tahlequah, was no longer carrying the body of her dead calf, which she had started pushing around Jan. 1. Researchers have previously said Tahlequah's behaviour is an apparent act of grief, and the whale had lost two of her four documented calves. She captured headlines worldwide when she pushed the remains of the earlier calf for 17 days in 2018. The southern resident killer whales are classified as endangered under Canadian and U.S. species-at-risk laws, with the centre saying each new calf is "vitally important" to the whales' survival and recovery. "We remain cautiously optimistic about J63's survival and will conduct follow-up observations of the calf's behaviour and physical condition in the coming days and months, as opportunities allow," it says in Tuesday's Facebook post. The Canadian government recently opted not to issue an emergency order to protect the whales despite a determination from its own fisheries and environment ministers that the southern residents face "imminent threats" to their survival. Instead, the Fisheries Department said with the decision last month that "incremental measures will be pursued" to protect the salmon-eating whales. "It has been determined that the most effective approach is to continue to manage human activities without making an emergency order, using existing legislative tools and non-regulatory measures," the statement said. WATCH | Orca calf spotted swimming with J-pod near Victoria: 'Sign of hope' for endangered killer whales as centre confirms newborn calf 2 hours ago Duration 1:09 The Centre for Whale Research says one of its field biologists has spotted a new calf in a pod of endangered killer whales off British Columbia's southern coast. Conservation groups, including the David Suzuki Foundation, Raincoast Conservation Foundation and World Wildlife Fund Canada, decried the decision, saying existing measures have "proven inadequate" to protect the whales from threats that range from inadequate prey to underwater noise and vessel strikes.
Yahoo
08-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Feds refuse protection order for southern resident orcas, rejecting ministers' advice
OTTAWA — The federal government is rejecting the recommendations of two of its own ministers and refusing to issue an emergency order protecting southern resident killer whales from "imminent threats" to their survival. Instead, the Fisheries Department says "incremental measures will be pursued" to protect the salmon-eating whales that live in British Columbia waters. Thursday's decision has been decried by conservation groups that say the refusal to issue an emergency order puts the species at greater risk of extinction. Groups including the David Suzuki Foundation, Raincoast Conservation Foundation and World Wildlife Fund Canada had asked for the order last year. The government says in a statement the environment and fisheries ministers announced their opinion in November that the species faces "imminent threats to its survival and recovery." It says the ministers were then "obliged" to recommend an emergency order for their protection under the Species At Risk Act, but the government has declined. "It has been determined that the most effective approach is to continue to manage human activities without making an emergency order, using existing legislative tools and non-regulatory measures," the statement says. "The decision also took into account social, economic, policy and other factors, and the broader public interest." The conservation groups said in a statement on Friday that existing protection measures "have thus far proven inadequate." They say "persistent and escalating threats" include inadequate salmon prey, underwater noise, fatal vessel strikes and pollution. "The urgency of the situation demands that decision-makers act with the boldness required to save southern resident killer whales from extinction," the groups say. This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 7, 2025. The Canadian Press
