Environmental Grant

Congratulations to the successful applicants of the 2023 Environmental Grant Program:

Meewasin Valley Authority: ($5,000) – Expand volunteer activities to create education materials and train volunteers on identification and monitoring. The education materials will include creation of identification keys, webinars and in person events, and creation of video resources to train participants.

Saskatoon Cycles: ($3,750) – Bike Valet that provides safe, secure, and cost-free parking for bicycles at large festivals and other major community events.

Saskatchewan Environmental Society: ($7,000) – Within the Smarter Science Better Buildings program, content for materials will be updated and displayed at the Western Development Museum. This program serves to educate residents on how to conserve energy and water in building systems.

Buena Vista Community Association: ($2,075) – In partnership with the Public-School Division Buena Vista Boulevard Garden Group will install a permanent water source for the expansion of their garden. Expansion items include native plant beds and prairie-friendly food plans, a little library, welcoming signs, rain barrels, and communal tools for garden volunteers.

Library of Things: ($5,000) – This project aims to create a communications campaign that will complement rebranding, a new website, and digital strategy. The Library of Things encourages residents to borrow short term use items to try out instead of purchasing to reduce waste at the landfill.

Nature Saskatchewan: ($3,000) – The Get Outside! Kids Club project provides opportunities for families and children to learn about naturalized and green park spaces across the City of Saskatoon and enhancing a culture of nature appreciation across 7 learning sites. Learning sites include important wetland habitat at Hyde Park or the Northeast Swale, afforestation sites like Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation, and neighbourhood parks with substantial habitat zones such as James Anderson Park and Lakewood Park. 

Friends of Afforestation: ($3,000) – This project aims to enhance the user experience at Saskatoon’s two afforestation areas. Components to this project will include enhancing the Prairie Forest Guide GPS smart phone app, adding 2 benches in the George Genereux Urban Regional Park, and developing a French translation of a place-based curriculum to promote awareness and understanding of natural and cultural values of the park.

25^th Street Theatre: ($5,250) – Funding is to increase the amount of outdoor light that will be running previously purchased solar panels. This will increase safety during the growing Fringe Festival and have Youth Project Leaders engage in environmental stewardship by creating mobile storage for solar panels, purchasing alternatives to plastic tablecloths and zip ties. This project will also encourage active transportation by providing a bike valet at the festival and enhance the green network by purchasing wood chips to protect the ground at W.E Graham Park.

Nuit Blanche Saskatoon: ($3,000) – This project encourages environmental stewardship through changing internal procedures and programming to be eco-friendly. The internal procedures include reducing printing waste by using QR codes and reusable signage. Programming changes include creating eco-activism artworks through partnerships with elementary or high schools.

Orchid Horticulture: ($4,500) – This project targets students in grade 4 and 5, citywide to develop environmental leadership through participating in 4 stations that will teach students about urban forestry and greenspaces, soil health, composting, and growing your own food. This project will run in June to coordinate with summer solstice and National Indigenous People Day.

Greater Saskatoon Catholic School Foundation: ($1,070) – At Bethlehem High School a garden tower machine will be purchased to grow food for Cooking class, Indigenous plants/herbs, and grow plants for all classes to green the school. This project will increase the green space in every classroom, use 2% of the water that traditional gardening takes, increase yields of produce by 30%, and students will use this resource to learn about how to grow and use their own food.

Saskatoon Zoo Society: ($3,250) – This project is to educate on the importance of butterflies to the ecosystem as pollinators, pest control and part of the food chain for other animals. 6 different stations that engage public with the value of butterflies will be created and utilized for education.  

SaskWatersheds: ($4,000) – This project will be to procure additional loanable educational, curriculum-linked kits for schools in Saskatoon that educate students about everything watershed related, including environmental protection and conservation.

Saskatoon Makerspace: ($4,250) – The repair café project focusses on pairing community members with product repair specialists to learn to repair assorted items. This allows people to become more self-sufficient while reducing waste.

Native Plant Society of Saskatchewan: ($1,855) – Expanding Wild About Saskatoon’s Pollinator Paradise YXE to increase Saskatoon’s biodiversity and green network by developing a Saskatoon- specific business case for replacing “conventional” landscaping with native plants.