Volunteers from Vancouver Black Library read to families at our BIPOC Reading Buddies event. Photo credits: Zahra Chan-Khan
After a fruitful month of events, the co-chairs of the 5th annual biodiversity days share their seeds of wisdom.
Biodiversity Days is a month-long series of events aimed at celebrating and communicating the importance of biodiversity to our communities. So, what is biodiversity and what makes it important? Biodiversity is the variety in ecosystems, species, and genes within and between different forms of life. We value biodiversity because it increases the resilience of ecosystems and communities, while providing invaluable ecosystem services like pollination, carbon sequestration, and disaster mitigation, to name a few. Under the Kunming-Montreal Biodiversity Framework, the UN has set important goals and targets for the future of biodiversity. With biodiversity days, we aim to do our part to reach these goals and to conserve biodiversity for future generations. This year, in alignment with the UN’s International Day for Biological Diversity, we have worked towards “harmony with nature and sustainable development”.
Dane, Student Co-Chair:
The events of Biodiversity Days were a highlight of my early experiences at UBC Botanical Garden as a new Work Learn student in 2023, so I was eager to be a student co-chair this year. Being tasked with organizing this year’s Family Nature Walk was daunting as I had no prior event planning experience, but I was excited to be a part of the Garden’s signature spring event. Though I was new to this kind of work, our wonderful Sustainability and Community Programs team at the Garden supported my growth as a leader and together we organized a lively and engaging event.
A major goal of the Family Nature Walk is to provide families with access to positive experiences in nature regardless of their background. Seeing such a great diversity of people enjoying their journeys through the education stations in the Garden and the Greenheart Treewalk really made the months of planning worth the effort. I hope that the kids who visited the Garden that day continue to be curious, and that they use their Kids Nature Kits to keep making discoveries about nature!
Another highlight of my experience organizing the Family Nature Walk was collaborating with our community partner organizations that do such important work with environmentalism and sustainable food systems. Bringing in the perspectives of these community partners sets a great example of the ways that communities around Vancouver are forming healthier relationships with nature.
In reflection, I think that Biodiversity Days this year was a time of mutual growth. Here at the Garden, our goal is to create space for communities to learn about the importance of biodiversity. Ultimately, co-chairing biodiversity days was as much of a learning experience for me as it was for any of our event attendees.
Lauren, Student Co-Chair:
One of my favourite aspects of working at the Garden is all of the people we get to engage with on a daily basis. That feeling of being a part of a vibrant community is unmatched. When Tara gave Dane and I the opportunity to coordinate the 5th annual Biodiversity Days I knew this would be an invaluable growing experience both professionally and personally.
In my role as a student co-chair, I was the first point of contact for most of our external partners. This included groups within UBC such as Beaty Biodiversity Museum, MOA, UBC Farm, PRSSS and various students and researchers, as well as groups from around Vancouver like Vancouver Fruit Tree project and VBL. During this past month I met so many new faces and from each, I was able to learn something new!
One thing that I have been very grateful for this past month was being able to be a part of the entire lifecycle of planning an event. From brainstorming, Zoom meetings and email chains; to organizing all components for execution and delivery; to feedback and reflection, every stage was a chance to grow various skills.
A great perk of this position is being able to attend all of these wonderful events. Seeing the smiles on people’s faces as stories and fun moments are shared makes me feel hopeful for our future. There is something so inspiring about bringing people together around a shared interest and goal.
Although many of these events looked quite different from each other, they all had the same feeling of mutual love and respect for the ecosystems around us.
- Birders look into the canopy at the Bird Walk. Photo credit: Ryder Oliver-Green
- Garden Staff members Sarah Doran-Cuelho, Zahra Chan-Khan, Dane Kapler, and Tara Moreau at Family Nature Walk
- Lauren Kufske engages families about flowers and pollinators along with volunteers at Family Nature Walk. Photo credit: Dane Kapler
- UBC Jazz Club plays a welcoming tune as visitors enter the front gates at Family Nature Walk. Photo credit: Dane Kapler
- Vivian Mearns Notaro shows participants a piece of cedar. Photo credit: Amina Chergui
- Rhiannon Lewis from the Sustainability and Community Programs Team holds up a map and tote bag from our Kids Nature Kits at the Family Nature Walk Registration Station. Photo credit: Dane Kapler
- The group searches for nocturnal pollinators at the Moth Walk. Photo credit: Dane Kapler
- Wishing Tree! Wishes for the future of biodiversity written by Family Nature Walk visitors. Photo credit: Dane Kapler
- Volunteers from Vancouver Black Library read to families at our BIPOC Reading Buddies event. Photo credit: Zahra Chan-Khan
Event Statistics:
- 16 in-person events
- 18 outreach opportunities in total
- 13 community partners
- ~1,550 people engaged
- ~ 102,000 in-person learning minutes
All month – iNaturalist Campus-Wide BioBlitz
- 840 observations
- 417 species observed
- 105 participants
- 5,250 learning minutes
May 3rd – Bird Walk at the Garden
- Partners: Bev and Bill Ramey, Alan Mckenzie & Jane McDonald
- 16 participants
- 2,400 learning minutes
May 3rd – Nature Club at Beaty Biodiversity Museum
- Partners: Beaty Biodiversity Museum
- ~110 participants
- 4,950 learning minutes
May 9th – Goth Butterflies: Moth Walk at UBC Farm
- Partners: Hannah Anderson, Matt Tsuruda, Daphne Chevalier
- 33 participants
- 4,950 learning minutes
May 10th – Science Rendezvous at Nitobe Memorial Garden
- 803 participants
- 2,4090 learning minutes
May 13th – Biodiversity Farm Tour
- Partners: Anna Brookes & Dr. Matt Mitchell
- 22 participants
- 2,640 learning minutes
May 15th – Stumpy – the Life and Times of a Western Redcedar Exhibit Opening
- Partners: Derek Tan (Beaty Biodiversity Museum)
- 56 participants
- 3,360 learning minutes
May 17th – Family Nature Walk at UBC Botanical Garden
- Partners: PaRX, PRSSS, Vancouver Fruit Tree Project, Urban Bounty,
- Musicians: UBC Jazz Club, Anthony Blackman
- 243 participants
- 21,870 learning minutes
May 21st – Multilingual Garden Tours at UBC Botanical Garden
- Partners: Friends of the Garden
- 19 participants
- 1,140 learning minutes
May 21st – Cedar: Knowledge Sharing with Vivian Mearns Notaro
- Partners: Vivian Mearns Notaro, MOA
- 18 participants
- 1,620 learning minutes
May 22nd – Climate Conversations: Local Experts Imagine a Climate-Changed Future
- Partners: 20 Local Experts
- ~40 participants
- 16,800 learning minutes
May 24th – Moss Walk on UBC Campus
- Partners: Dr. Karen Golinski, Justin Ngo
- 27 participants
- 3,240 learning minutes
May 25th – VBL BIPOC Reading Buddies in the Forest Theatre
- Partners: Sarina Virani of Vancouver Black Library
- 42 participants
- 5,040 learning minutes
May 28th – Campus Bat Walk
- Partners: Dr. Matt Mitchell, Aaron Aguirre and M2L2 Lab
- 29 participants
- 3,480 learning minutes
May 29th – SEEDS Meadow Bioblitz
- Partners: Renée Lussier, Heather Blysma
- ~11 participants
- ~440 learning minutes
May 29th – Van Dusen Pollinator Days
- ~ 100 participants
- ~ 1500 learning minutes
May 30th – SEEDS Tree Walk and Forest Therapy
- Partners: Dr. Tahia Devisscher & Finn Koepf
- ~10 participants
- ~1,800 learning minutes
May 31st – Pollinator Walk at the Garden
- ~18 participants
- ~1,620 learning minutes
Biodiversity Days is made possible with funding provided through the UBC Botanical Garden Community Outreach Fund and with funds from the SEEDS Sustainability Program.
We, at the Sustainability and Community Programs team are so grateful for the continued support of our communities, partners, and collaborators for supporting our enthusiasm for biodiversity. We would like to thank you for making the 5th annual Biodiversity Days such a success! Don’t forget to keep up with our website for the full biodiversity days report coming later this year.
Beyond biodiversity days, we will continue to advocate for biodiversity and bioculturally diverse communities throughout the year. Until next time, we hope you will find ways to support and celebrate biodiversity in your own neighborhood!
Authors: Lauren Kufske and Dane Kapler work at UBC Botanical Garden, where they serve as Sustainability and Community Programs Facilitators. In their roles, they collaborate with Dr. Tara Moreau and the SCP (Sustainability and Community Programs) Team to bring community events to life. Lauren and Dane are both in their final year at UBC. Lauren is pursuing a degree in Environmental Science with a minor in Sustainable Food Systems, while Dane is studying Natural Resources Conservation with a focus on Global Perspectives.