What is Biodiversity Days?
Biodiversity Days is a month-long event in May, to honour the International Day for Biological Diversity (May 22) with a series of engagement opportunities that aim to celebrate and raise awareness of the fragile species, genes and ecosystems that sustain our communities.
Localizing this plan in Southwest BC is critical. Participate in one of our Biodiversity Days events to learn about the work already underway in our community and how you can take action from the ground up.
To learn more about Biodiversity Days 2025, please view our Biodiversity Days Report 2025.
Events to Celebrate Biodiversity
This year’s sixth annual Biodiversity Days includes a diversity of in-person events. Dig into our 2026 program to celebrate biodiversity, with more events to come every week.
Interested in exploring and documenting biodiversity on UBC Vancouver campus? Join our month-long Bioblitz this May! Last year, participants recorded over 950 observations across 439 species—let’s see what we can discover this year.
A Bioblitz is a community event where people come together to identify and record plants, animals, fungi, and other organisms in a specific area.
Get involved by logging your observations on iNaturalist anywhere on campus. You can explore what others are finding or contribute your own sightings. This project supports community science and helps us better understand the diversity of species and ecosystems at UBC.
When: All May Long!
Where: UBC Vancouver Campus
When: May 2nd | 10:30am-1:00pm
Where: Beaty Biodiversity Museum
Cost: Free
Join us for a guided Tree Walk and Forest Bathing experience that blends nature connection with research in action. As we explore UBC’s vibrant urban forest, you’ll be introduced to a variety of tree species while engaging in sensory and mindfulness exercises designed to deepen your connection with the natural world and all the benefits it provides to our physical and mental wellbeing.
This event builds on the knowledge gained through the UBC Tree Inventory Project, a multi-year SEEDS research collaboration between the Faculty of Forestry, Campus and Community Planning and other partners. This valuable student research initiative maps and monitors the health, diversity, and ecological value of trees across campus—informing biodiversity conservation and climate resilience planning at UBC.
Whether you're a nature lover, a curious student, or simply in need of a reset, this walk offers a chance to slow down, reflect, and experience the forest in a new way. Leave feeling refreshed, grounded, and more attuned to the trees that shape our campus urban forest.
This event will be held outdoors, rain or shine. Please dress accordingly.
When: May 6th | 10:00am to 12:30pm
Where: The Reconciliation Pole on UBC Campus (2373-2425 Main Mall, next to the Forest Sciences Centre)
Cost: Free!
Speakers: Dr. Tahia Devisscher and Finn Koepf
This event is by invitation only.
A celebration of the SEEDS Sustainability Program’s interdisciplinary partnerships and student applied research, with a focus on advancing integrative responses that support the UBC’s climate, biodiversity, and wellbeing commitments. Attendees will get to “choose their own adventure”, selecting from several concurrent, cross-cutting sessions that span the themes of urban biodiversity, sustainable food systems, and circular economy. Sessions will include thought-provoking presentations by student researchers, followed by action-oriented discussions on select campus sustainability topics.
Tentative biodiversity-related session titles:
- Designing for People and Planet at UBC Vancouver
- Leveraging Campus Biodiversity Data for Impact
When: May 7th | 9:00am to 3:00pm
Where: Centre for Interactive Research on Sustainability (CIRS) - various rooms
Cost: Free, invitation required
1. Get hands-on with specimens from the Beaty Biodiversity Museum:
2. Learn about plants with UBC Botanical Garden:
Come say hi to UBC Botanical Garden's Education Team and learn about flowers, moss, and upcoming Biodiversity Days events! Engage your senses by observing and touching flowers and several species of mosses up close using hand lenses and a microscope. If you're up for the challenge, spin the wheel and win native species inspired stickers for answering questions about biodiversity!
3. Explore earth science with the Pacific Museum of Earth:
After your time in the Niche, head across Main Mall to visit the Pacific Museum of Earth. You’ll learn about earth science, space science, fossils, and more!
When: May 9th | 10:00am-3:00pm
Where: Beaty Biodiversity Museum, 2212 Main Mall, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4
Cost: Free! No registration needed.
Interested in learning how to identify and support birds in your backyard? Want to know more about bird biodiversity in our region?
Join us for an introductory bird walk at UBC Botanical Garden. We will identify familiar birds, look for spring migrating species and listen for the birds’ melodious songs. Participants will also learn about bird strike mitigation research at UBC and how to prevent bird strikes!
This event is suited for beginner birders and will help you to identify common birds of the Lower Mainland, based on their behaviour, size, shape and sounds. The Merlin App on cell phones will be demonstrated to identify the bird songs and calls. The walk will include:
- Tips for how to identify bird groups
- Different habitats preferred by specific bird species
- Considerations for making bird-friendly habitat in gardens and around your home
- Actions to preserve and protect bird biodiversity to help them thrive
When: May 9th | 9:00am to 11:30am
Where: UBC Botanical Garden, 6408 SW Marine Dr, Vancouver BC
Cost: $11 plus tax for Adults, $9 plus tax for Concession (Garden Members, UNA Residents, Youth (13-17), Seniors (65+), UBC Students|Staff|Faculty. Valid ID card required.)
Guides: Bev and Bill Ramey, experienced birders. The walking route is mostly paved and fairly level; a short distance will be walking on grass and gravel. One section has the route option of stone stairs or a gradual gravel slope. There are washrooms and benches along the route.
Join us at the UBC Farm for a guided tour and an in-depth look at on-Farm biodiversity. We'll explore the working Farm, surrounding coastal hemlock forest, hedgerows, flower fields, and soil, and learn aboutagroecology, agrobiodiversity, and all the kinds of life that support the Farm.
When: May 13th | 12:00pm - 1:00pm
Where: UBC Farm - 3461 Ross Drive, Vancouver, BC
Cost: $11 plus tax for Adults, $9 plus tax for Concession (Garden Members, UNA Residents, Youth (13-17), Seniors (65+), UBC Students|Staff|Faculty. Valid ID card required.)
As this is a pilot program, participation is by invitation only.
When: May 15th | 10:00am-12:00pm
Where: UBC Botanical Garden, 6804 SW Marine Dr, Vancouver BC
When: May 16th | 10:00am-4:00pm
Where: UBC Botanical Garden, 6804 SW Marine Dr, Vancouver BC
Cost:
- Children and Youth tickets |Under 18s| are $47 plus tax. This includes admission to both the Garden and TreeWalk, and a Kids Nature Kit*.
- Adult tickets are $29.5 plus tax. This includes admission to both the Garden and TreeWalk.
- Concession tickets | Seniors (65+) | are $22 plus tax. This includes admission to both the Garden and TreeWalk.
*Kids Nature Kit:
Each children's ticket includes one Kids Nature Kit, an exciting, family-favourite element of this event. When families arrive at the Garden, Kids Nature Kits are distributed to registered participants and include a cotton tote bag filled with fun learning materials that support children in engaging nature! Additional Kids Nature Kits will be available for purchase at the Shop in the Garden for $30 plus tax.
We strive to keep our programming accessible to all families. Please email garden.programs@ubc.ca if the admission cost is a barrier.
Join us for an evening at UBC Botanical Garden for an evening tour to celebrate the UN Day of Cultural Diversity!
Our knowledgeable guides will lead you though the Garden, sharing fascinating insights about the plants and the stories they hold - in both English and an alternative language! We have French, Spanish and Mandarin tours to choose from at UBC Botanical Garden. These multilingual tours are designed for fluent speakers and new learners
When: May 21st | 6:00pm to 7:00pm
Where: UBC Botanical Garden, 6804 SW Marine Dr, Vancouver BC
French, Mandarin and Spanish
Cost: $11 plus tax for Adults, $9 plus tax for Concession (Garden Members, UNA Residents, Under 18s, Seniors (65+), UBC Students|Staff|Faculty. Valid ID card required.)
Register Now
Spots are limited and advance registration is required.
Before your Tour: We require that all participants read and sign our Liability Waiver prior to their scheduled climb.
Meet your nocturnal neighbours; little brown bats! This walk will provide an introduction to bat ecology and behaviour, the different bat species that live in and around Vancouver, and their importance to ecosystems and people. We will visit a nearby bat roost to observe bats emerge for the night, and will use ultrasonic detectors to listen for bat calls. We will not be handling any bats, just visually observing them and listening to their ultrasonic calls.
When: May 27th | 8:30pm-10:30pm
Where: W. Robert Wyman Plaza on UBC Campus (Main Mall and Memorial Road next to the Frederic Laserre and Old Administration Buildings)
Cost: $11 plus tax for Adults, $9 plus tax for Concession (Garden Members, UNA Residents, Under 18s, Seniors (65+), UBC Students|Staff|Faculty. Valid ID card required.).
Speaker: Dr. Matt Mitchell
When: May 29th | 8:30pm-11:00pm
Where: UBC Farm - 3461 Ross Drive, Vancouver, BC
Cost: $11 plus tax for Adults, $9 plus tax for Concession (Garden Members, UNA Residents, Youth (13-17), Seniors (65+), UBC Students|Staff|Faculty. Valid ID card required.)
When: May 31st | 2:00pm-4:00pm
Where: Forest Theatre at UBC Botanical Garden, 6804 SW Marine Dr, Vancouver BC
Cost: Free!
Registration link coming soon
Interested in being a mentor at our event? Please sign up here.
Why Biodiversity Days?
UBC Vancouver is located on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the Musqueam People. The land has always been a place of learning for Indigenous People, who for millennia have passed on their culture, history and traditions from one generation to the next on this site.
Biodiversity is integral to past, present and future communities, yet we are losing ecosystems, species and genes faster than we can account for them. The extinction crisis requires inclusive solutions to prevent ecological collapse.
Biodiversity Days is an annual event that aims to:
- Raise awareness of biodiversity and its importance to human and ecological health;
- Mobilize local and global action to stop the loss of biodiversity; and,
- Build a generation of stewards, scientists and citizens that actively protect and restore biodiversity.
Biodiversity Days Organizers: Biodiversity Days is a month-long celebration every May that honours the International Day for Biological Diversity (May 22). Local celebrations highlight the many species, genes and ecosystems that sustain our communities. Hosted by UBC Botanical Garden in collaboration with SEEDS Sustainability Program, this year’s program features a diversity of events, including family nature walks, a student Research to Action Showcase, bird tours, community science action, virtual events and more.
Biodiversity Days is made possible with funding provided through UBC Botanical Garden Community Outreach Program and the SEEDS Sustainability Program.
Questions? Contact us at: garden.programs@ubc.ca