The Green Teams of Canada set out a decade ago with a mission to empower and connect people who want to help the environment.
Armed with a passion for the environment, founder Lyda Salatian took a risk and started something new.
Greater Victoria Green Team program manager Kaitlin Warren said her goal stemmed from creating a cleaner province by organizing groups of people to remove litter and invasive species from parks and plots of land.
Her efforts eventually flourished into the Lower Mainland Green Team in 2013. Once the group received charitable status, the Greater Victoria Green Team was established.
Warren joined the team last year initially through the youth and leadership program, which was started to teach and inspire the next generation of community leaders.
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“The idea is that change can’t happen without people caring, and we bring people together so we can teach them and empower them to make a real difference,” said Warren.”We do that by offering drop-in activities that require no prior knowledge or experience.”
The drop-in classes focus on learning about habitat loss, biodiversity, invasive plant removal, community cleanups and tree planting.
“Perhaps it’s a piece of land they never visited before; now they have a bit of a connection to that piece of land and an even stronger connection to the community … We have people telling us a lot of the time that it’s very inspiring to feel a part of something bigger than yourself,” said Warren.
She says they collaborate with other local organizations who do similar work to raise awareness while working with landowners to decipher what is needed for a particular environment.
That is the goal they seek to achieve with the upcoming invasive species removal workshop on Oct.14. Attendees can learn what an invasive plant is, why it is so important to move them, and strategies to identify its species – the culprit English ivy, which belongs to the ginseng family and has disrupted many ecosystems in B.C.
“We provide gloves and we tell people how to be safe – all the little tidbits and tricks,” said Warren.
The meet-up will occur at 4394 Lochside Dr. in Saanich from 9:45 a.m. to 1 p.m. on a donated parcel of land intended to be preserved for ecological purposes.
No experience is needed to participate in the educational opportunity, and you can sign up by visiting the Greater Victoria Green Team’s Facebook page
According to Warren, spots are filling up fast, but if you can’t make this event, don’t sweat it. The team runs various events throughout each month that you can join.
“They do learn lots, they make new friends and meet new people, and it’s special to see and feel that impact.”
READ MORE: Greater Victoria Green Team volunteers pull together