Ontario's hottest new eco adventure is now sending thrill-seekers zipping through the Carolinian forests of Norfolk County.
Long Point Zip Line Canopy Tour, Observatory & Eco Adventures launched this past spring and has quickly become a major eco attraction in a region that boasts the largest remaining forest cover in Southern Ontario. In fact, Norfolk County is known as Canada's Forest Capital, a small rural county only 90 minutes south of Toronto, that is gaining a reputation as an eco gem.
While visiting the site, you'll also learn about native plant, animal and bird life in this ecological paradise overlooking the marshes and bays of Long Point. The Point is one of the world's longest sandspits, jutting more than 30 km into Lake Erie.
In addition to zip lining and suspension bridges, there are kayaking tours, star-gazing observation tower, and mountain biking trails.
This is the only spot on the north shore of Lake Erie where you can thrill at the expanse of 15,000 acres of protected forests and marshes. The Long Point World Biosphere Reserve is dedicated to conserving biodiversity, promoting sustainable communities, and partnering in research, monitoring, outreach and education.

The Live Green Toronto Festival takes over Yonge-Dundas Square on Sunday, August 30, showcasing more than 100 exhibitors to help you live greener. More than 40,000 people are expected to converge at this festival which will see the street-closure of Yonge Street (from Dundas to Queen). Live entertainment will be featured all day. As well, kid-friendly activities make this festival enjoyable for the whole family.
Check out eco fashions, electric bikes, organic foods and much more. Among the exhibitors will be Clean Air Foundation, Forest Stewardship Council, Bullfrog Power, Oak Ridges Moraine, FoodShare Toronto, Global Aware, Go Green Energy, Green Enterprise Toronto, Green Living, GreenSaver, OceanWise, Toronto Beekeepers Cooperative, and many more.
Live Green Toronto is a five-year program to promote and turn green ideas into actions that help neighbourhoods and the planet. 

The first annual Atlantic Eco-Expo is coming to Halifax Nov. 21-22 at Exhibition Park. The show will promote and raise awareness of green products and services, and sustainability. Exhibitor categories include eco-fashion, eco-tourism, green business and technology, home and garden, education, green building, green transportation and much more. And you can instantly help the cause for a greener world by attending the show and dropping off your old cellphone to be recycled. What's more, when you take this action, your admission to the show is free. Other features at the show will be a Green Kids Zone, green cuisine and guest speakers.
What we particularly like about the Atlantic Eco-Expo is its steps to walk the talk. In today's world, more and more consumers, organizations and companies are taking a harder look at the services they use, and the commitments they make to back up their promotion of green. That's where the Atlantic Eco-Expo scores big marks. Check out these measures to reduce the show's footprint:
• Communication technology to limit paper trail
• Affiliation with green hotel for the event
• Exhibitor materials and manual provided electronically
• Incentives to use public transportation
• All signage reused and recycled
• Event clothing 100% certified organic
• Significant effort to limit water usage and electricity demand
• Partnering with sustainable businesses for event marketing, logistics, and planning
• Selected location with sustainability initiatives

632: 19 May 2009 - Published by Green Communities Canada

TONY WOODS. A tireless champion of building energy efficiency has died. Tony Woods, a friend to Green Communities, was founder of Canam Building Envelope Specialists and ZERODRAFT. Don Eaton notes: "He was definitely one of the main guys who woke Canada up to the opportunities presented by sealing houses and buildings. It was great to see the success he had in the last few years after all the time he spent slogging in the trenches."

GREEN UPDATES. Have a look at Peterborough Green-Up’s collection of weekly television segments.

WALKABILITY. The first leg of GCC's Canadian Walking Master Class kicked off in Hamilton last week. It collected a fair amount of media attention: two radio spots, a television feature, and an article in the Hamilton Spectator.

ACTIVITIES. Clean Calgary offers a visit to the local waste water treatment plant on 30 May; anIntroduction to Permaculture course starting 11 June; and a workshop on Bokashi, an indoor composting method using fermentation to decompose materials, 11 June.

WEB WEBSITE. See Conservation Corps Newfoundland and Labrador’s new Well Aware website.

SUNNY DAYS. Solar Neighbourhoods program helps residents of Toronto's Ward 30 tap into sun power by providing a $1,000 discount to homeowners who install solar water heating systems. Windfall Ecology Centre is a delivery agent.

COMMUNITY PLANNING. Live Green Toronto, a program helping communities launch neighbourhood climate change and clean air projects, holds a Community Strategy Session, 23 May. Contact Toronto Green Community's Minaz Asani-Kanji for more information.

HOME, SEALED HOME. Cooperative Housing Federation of Canada’s Sustainability at Home: A Toolkit for Your Co-op offers help for making everyday choices.

WIND ONLINE FORUM. Community Wind Energy Web Conference is a two-day event featuring more than 25 industry experts presenting community wind opportunities and challenges. 26-27 May.

PESTICIDE TALK. Free audio conference on pesticides with participants from Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment, Canadian Environmental Law Association and a representative from Health Canada's Pest Management Regulatory Agency. Organized by Canadian Network for Human Health and the Environment. RSVP before 21 May.

VOLUNTARY POISONING. Two of Canada's leading environmental activists ingest and inhale a host of everyday things, all suspected of being toxic and posing long term health risks to humans, and reveal the pollution load in their bodies before and after the experiment in Slow Death by Rubber Duck: How the Toxic Chemistry of Everyday Life Affects our Health.

SUSTAINABLE SEAFOOD. The Pocket Guide to Eating Sushi helps consumers protect threatened marine species while satisfying their cravings for sushi …Bottomfeeder: How to Eat Ethically in a World of Vanishing Seafood may change your seafood-eating habits.

JOBS. Green Venture, Summer Students, 12-week placements (four positions). Due 27 May ... Credit Valley Conservation Authority, Supervisor/Corporate Communications. Due 28 May ... Smart Commute,Program Manager, Northeast Toronto. Due 24 May.

World Ocean Day is on June 8th and we are happy to bring you a list of all the World Ocean Day events and activities from across Canada. Stay tuned!

David Suzuki Foundation - Canada Wide
The David Suzuki Foundation is helping you celebrate World Ocean Day by providing you ideas and tools to organize an event in your area. Mix and match activities to create your own special Oceans Day event – at home, school, work, or elsewhere in your community. DSF has activities for the young and the old, the landlocked and the waterlogged, including a sustainable seafood feast, sea-themed movie night and a shore cleanup. Whether you live near the ocean or not, there's a suite of celebrations for you to choose from!

Visit www.davidsuzuki.org/oceansday for more information, or email us at oceansday@davidsuzuki.org.

 

Friends of Semiahmoo Bay Society & City of Surrey - British Columbia

Sunday, June 7, 2009
11am - 3pm
Blackie Spit
Foot of McBride St., Crescent Beach, Surrey, B.C.

Please join us for a fascinating and fun day in celebration of World Ocean Day.  Featuring interactive displays, family activities, crafts, face painting, marine creature touch tank, live music, kayaking, scuba, interpretive walks and Sammy the Seagull! Visit their web site: http://www.birdsonthebay.ca/wod.htm for more info.

WWF Canada - Canada Wide

The World Wildlife Fund has a number of projects and initiatives regarding the protection of our waters from coast to coast. Check out their Our Ocean Needs Action section on their web site.

 

Sierra Club of Canada - Canada Wide

The Sierra Club of Canada will be hosting a number of related events from across Canada. Here is one from BC below. Visit their web site for more information.

 

Finding Coral - Living Ocean Society

Follow the adventures of the Living Ocean Society's Finding Coral Expedition as they set out on June 8th in two mini subs to explore deep sea corals in the Hecate Strait and the Queen Charlotte Basin off the coast of British Columbia. Read our post to find out more.

View the YouTube clip below:

 

Background info from: The Ocean Project

The concept for World Ocean Day was proposed in 1992 by the Government of Canada at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro and it had been unofficially celebrated every year since then. Official designation by the U.N. is a significant step in conserving and protecting our world's ocean.
World Ocean Day provides an opportunity each year to celebrate our world ocean and our personal connection to the sea. The Ocean Project, working closely with the World Ocean Network each year, helps to coordinate events and activities with aquariums, zoos, museums, conservation organizations, universities, schools, businesses.

If you or your community/organization is celebrating World Ocean Day, let us know by submitting your stories and photos!

Environmental action starts at home and Canadian women are leading the way. A recent TD Friends of the Environment Foundation 'CEO Poll' reveals that 52% of women are the Chief Environment Officer or "CEO" of their household compared to 36% of men.

Interestingly, the survey found that children are the number one influence on environmental behaviour - with more than one in four respondents acknowledging that their children influenced them to be more environmentally responsible.

"Canadian families are changing the world, one backyard at a time," says Mary Desjardins, Executive Director, TD Friends of the Environment Foundation. "With 92% of respondents saying their household has a "Chief Environment Officer", it is clear that Canadians are committed to and passionate about environmental responsibility."

The 'Household CEO'
The TD FEF CEO Poll found that the top three green activities that "CEOs" do at home are managing recycling (91%), reducing their home's energy consumption (84%) and encouraging waste reduction (82%). While 69% of survey respondents named themselves as their household's "CEO", only 2% identified their children as leading the charge, even though children were identified as the top influence for instigating 'green' changes around the home.

After children (26%), respondents said that the second strongest influence on their own environmental behaviour are spouses (21%) followed by parents (12%). The TD FEF CEO Poll also asked people to rate their household's environmental friendliness: 18% rated their household as an "A" while 61% gave their household a "B".  Only 2% gave their household a failing grade with an "F".

"The new TD FEF website is an effective resource for all Canadians who are looking for simple yet impactful ways to increase their household's environmental activities," said Desjardins. "Making just a few small changes to the way we live will make a tremendous difference in the environment at home and in the community."  

The New TD FEF Website
Launched in time for Earth Day, www.tdfef.com provides information on the TD Friends of the Environment Foundation including its funding of local grassroots environment and wildlife projects across the country, and how Canadians can get involved.  Additional highlights include a Zero Footprint calculator, enabling visitors to calculate the impact of their daily activities on the environment.

There are several ways Canadians can get involved with TD FEF:

• Non-profit organizations with a charitable registration number and schools can submit a request for financial support for their environment and wildlife projects to the TD Friends of the Environment Foundation. Funding applications are only accepted online;
• Volunteering with their local TD FEF Chapter Advisory Board or by signing-up to support a TD FEF environmental project like the TD Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup;
  
• Visiting the TD Friends of the Environment Foundation page on Facebook.

About the TD Friends of the Environment Foundation CEO Poll:
The TD Friends of the Environment Foundation CEO Poll was conducted by Angus Reid Strategies on March 17, 2009.  The online survey polled English and French speaking Canadians 18 years of age or older using the Angus Reid Omnibus. The sample size includes 1,002 men and women.

Earth Day Canada, in partnership with Cascades Inc., is searching for Canada's 2009 Hometown Heroes. Nominators only have two weeks before Earth Day to get their submissions in!

The Hometown Heroes Award recognizes and encourages environmental leadership and achievement in local communities. Canada's 2009 environmental hero will receive a cash-prize of $10 000 - $5 000 to keep and $5 000 to donate to the environmental cause of their choice.

Receiving the award has become a prestigious honour in the environmental sector. Last year's winner, David Donnelly, legal counsel to some of Canada's leading non-profit and charitable organizations, credited the award as his highlight of 2008.

"I am so thankful Earth Day Canada is able to recognize the heroics of community environmental leaders," stated Donnelly. "Receiving the Hometown Heroes Award made my year and re-energized my personal commitment to the environment."

Whether people are involved in the community garden movement, the protection of natural spaces or have started their own environmental network, these heroics need to be recognized and supported.

"We are looking for environmental leaders who have shown commitment and achieved results in their community," says Jed Goldberg, President of Earth Day Canada. "They are the unsung heroes of the environmental movement in Canada that work tirelessly for a cause that every household in Canada is concerned about. Equally important, they inspire others to action."

The Hometown Heroes Award program was established in 2004 by Earth Day Canada to recognize and celebrate environmental leaders who have fostered meaningful, long-term community awareness and action. The Hometown Heroes Award program is made possible through a committed partnership with Cascades - one of the world's most environmentally-progressive paper companies.

To nominate yourself, an individual or group from your community, download the Nomination Form and follow the submission instructions. The deadline for applications is Earth Day, April 22, 2009.

The Canada Green Building Council (CaGBC) is now holding a workshop series called LEED® Canada for Homes. The workshops are designed to help Canadians learn about green bulding strategies.

Here is how CaGBC describes the initiative: 

LEED® Canada for Homes is a comprehensive, voluntary, market-driven green building rating system for residential construction. It is based on the USGBC's LEED® for Homes rating system and it evaluates performance on a range of ecological and human health issues from a whole home perspective, providing a definitive benchmark for what constitutes 'a green home.'

Visit www.cagbc.org for more information, and to register.

 

 

Canada.com has launched a new section on their web site called the "Sustainable Living Guide" with dedicated sections on Eco Homes, Environmental News, Green Driving, Eco Fashion, and Organic Gardening.

Here are some links to articles from their web site....

You can't blow these homes down

Your next home could be growing in a farm field this summer. Energy-efficient straw bale houses, once..

'Emissions-free' coal plant pilot fires up in Germany

One of Europe's biggest power companies inaugurates on Tuesday a pilot project using a technology that...

Can we bring electric vehicles to the masses?

Malcolm Bricklin says the auto industry is in the middle of a perfect storm. Fuel prices are at unprecedented...

Eco Fashion

The latest from WWF Canada THEGOODLIFE...

Living The Good Life in Style!

Look great while living The Good Life, by shopping for vintage clothes, altering the clothes from your own closet, or having a clothing swap with your friends! Find your unique style this fall, by beating the urge to shop for new clothes. Show your true (fashion) colours by committing to one of The Good Life's newest actions - purchasing vintage clothing - instead of buying the same thing everyone else is wearing.

By saying no to brand new duds, you will save money, help divert materials from landfills, reduce energy needed to transport clothes from far away, and save resources needed to create new clothes.

And don't forget the kids! Help them live The Good Life too by doing some back-to-school shopping at your local vintage store. Let their creativity soar without spending lots of money.

New Actions Added!

Keep checking The Good Life site for new and exciting actions you and your family can take! Be one of the first members to choose not to own a car. And if you're tired of paying for hot water, why not help the planet by installing a solar water heater?

In Our Community

Meet two of WWF's very own staff and learn what living The Good Life means to them. From making their own green cleaning products to growing their own organic vegetables, learn how Sara Campbell Mates and Kim Bilous are making a difference each and every day.

This season, lower your fashion footprint while creating a new and exciting wardrobe!