The award-winning Butterfly Project marked its sixth year in 2022, and we couldn’t be happier about the ongoing enthusiasm and action of Rangers. As COVID-19 restrictions lifted, Rangers spread their pollinator and native plant love at community events, daycare centres, schools and workplaces, as well as over garden fences and on sidewalks with passers-by.
Together they planted about 22,000 native wildflowers and grasses and 2,400 native trees and shrubs in 562 gardens, and completed 17 new Butterflyways, which are collections of 12 or more habitat gardens in close proximity. A list of Butterflyways completed in 2022 can be found below. As of fall 2022, the total number of Butterflyways across the country is 92. Some Rangers have added their Butterflyways and habitat gardens to a public map found here.
Volunteer Rangers are the public face and heart of the Butterflyway Project. They are community builders and nature lovers, artists and scientists, novice and master gardeners, and everything in between. What they share is a commitment to work together on pollinator protection and advocacy in their communities. In 2022 we recruited 323 new Rangers, bringing the total to 750.
“Joining the Butterflyway Project has changed the course of my life. I channel all of my gardening passion and the knowledge that I have acquired from DSF and others to help pollinators. It began with my property but has spread to schools and other land in my community.”
Ranger Sherry, Ontario
As in past years, the foundation provided Rangers with online training in native plants, pollinators, eco-friendly gardening and community organizing, and facilitated networking through virtual gatherings and social media. Rangers, however, quickly took the lead on networking and generously shared seeds, plants, knowledge and ideas with one another.
Volunteering with the Butterflyway Project is an antidote to the despair caused by society’s dire and complex challenges. Rangers consistently speak about the restored hope that comes from connecting with one another, with neighbours and with nature. The testimonials below demonstrate the power of this little project that keeps on going and giving.
As mentioned above, Rangers work to establish Butterflyways, which are 12 or more habitat gardens located in close proximity. Here is a list of Butterflyways completed in 2022:
- South Shore NS Butterflyway, Lunenburg, N.S.
- Pincourt Butterflyway, Pincourt, Que.
- Ormstown Butterflyway, Ormstown, Que.
- Barrie Butterflyway, Barrie, Ont.
- Orillia Butterflyway, Orillia, Ont.
- White Lake Butterflyway, Godfrey, Ont.
- Georgina Butterflyway, Georgina, Ont.
- St. Jacobs Woolwich Butterflyway, St. Jacobs, Ont.
- East Gwillimbury Butterflyway, East Gwillimbury, Ont.
- James Dougall Butterflyway, Windsor, Ont.
- Albrin Bay Park Master Gardeners and Friends Butterflyway, Winnipeg, Man.
- Girton Gardens, Winnipeg, Man.
- North Glenora Butterflyway, Edmonton, Alta.
- Coulee Ridge Butterflyway, Monarch, Alta.
- Legal’s Pollinator Pathways, Legal, Alta.
- Puntledge Pollinator’s Butterflyway, Puntledge, B.C.
- Sechelt Butterflyway, Sechelt, B.C.
Check out the October 2022 news release for more details on Ranger activities in 2022 and the project’s history.
“This project has increased our community awareness of the importance of biodiversity, it has inspired beautiful little pollinator patches to be planted, it has got me out in the community interacting with like-minded villagers, it has inspired seed exchanges with other local communities, and it has made many people more aware of different types of butterflies and other pollinators.”
Ranger Val, B.C.
Ranger recruitment for 2023 will take place in January. Please follow The David Suzuki Foundation on social media and sign-up for our e-newsletter to stay informed.
The Butterflyway Project is proudly supported by national partner Cascades, with additional funding support by the Chamandy Foundation, Genus Capital Management and the Cavelti Family Foundation.
