Category Archives: Green

365 Things to Do in Toronto, Green, Toronto, Toronto events

179. Green City Cycles Volunteer Maintenance

June 28, 2011 Heikki Walden

June 28, 2011

Ever thought you’d like to learn the basics of bicycle maintenance? Evergreen Brickworks will train you in bicycle mechanics and shop function for free, if you commit to volunteering for Bike Works with Green City Cycles over the season!

Tonight from 5pm until 9pm, you can learn everything you need to know to keep your bicycle in tip-top shape. Brickworks provides the tools, space, instructions and refreshments – you provide the bicycle and enthusiasm! In return, you’ll be expected to commit to volunteering a few hours over the season during open shop hours, and attend one or two workshops each month. It’s a great way to learn how to care for your bicycle, while giving back to the community!

To find out more about Green City Cycles Volunteer Maintenance, or to download a volunteer application for this program, go to Evergreen Brickworks’ website.

365 Things to Do in Toronto, Green, Toronto, Toronto events, Toronto festivals

142. Kids World of Energy Festival

May 22, 2011 Heikki Walden

May 22, 2011

Today is the last day of the Kids World of Energy Festival, organized in partnership between TREC Renewable Energy Co-operative and Evergreen Brick Works. The weekend’s festivities include interactive, family-oriented activities focusing on the themes of Climate Change, Renewable Energy, and the Science of Energy. Not only will you be able to check out Evergreen Brickworks (a must-see in our city!), you’ll find out how you and your family can work to contribute to a sustainable future.

The Kids World of Energy Festival operates from 10am until 4pm today; take public transit to start conserving energy now! A free shuttle bus departs from Broadview subway station every 15 minutes, straight to Evergreen Brickworks! For more information on the Festival, go to http://www.trec.on.ca/Festival.aspx; for more information on Evergreen Brickworks, check out http://ebw.evergreen.ca.

365 Things to Do in Toronto, Green, Toronto, Toronto farmers' markets, Toronto food

130. Trinity Bellwoods Farmers’ Market

May 10, 2011 Heikki Walden

May 10, 2011

The promise of summer is officially in the air with the first Trinity Bellwoods Farmers’ Market of 2011, today! Located in the northwest section of Trinity Bellwoods Park at Shaw and Dundas West, this farmers’ market features a great selection of local fruits and veggies, fish and honey, seedlings and bread, coffee and artisan cheeses, and much more!

We all know that it has been an especially cold spring this year, so don’t come expecting peaches and raspberries (they will come eventually!), but there will still be plenty of wares to purchase, farmers to meet, and community to enjoy.

The Trinity Bellwoods Farmers’ Market starts at 3pm and wraps up at 7pm; for more information on vendors and to learn what produce will be available at the market, go to www.tbfm.ca.

365 Things to Do in Toronto, Green, Toronto, Toronto events

128. Jane’s Walk

May 8, 2011 Heikki Walden

May 8, 2011

“Cities have the capability of providing something for everybody, only because, and only when, they are created by everybody.” Jane Jacobs’ vision was to build walkable neighbourhoods and urban literacy, and to see cities planned with the idea that people would meet their neighbours and engage their communities. Jane’s Walk celebrates that vision by encouraging free walking tours on the first weekend of May each year, organized by local individuals who share Jane’s passion for walkable, liveable communities.

Coinciding with Jane’s birthday, Jane’s Walk principles include bridging the gap between modes of transportation and the environment and infrastructure, aspiring to make city streets safe for all users. Last year Jane’s Walk included 424 neighbourhood tours in 9 countries; this year’s event will include over 100 walks in Toronto alone! No matter what neighbourhood you live in, there is a Jane’s Walk near you! To register for a walk, go to janeswalk.net, and peruse the walking opportunities! Some walks are limited to a maximum number of people, but there are several walks, and there is surely space for you to tag along as you discover Jane Jacobs and her vision for cities, including our own.

365 Things to Do in Toronto, Green, Toronto, Toronto events, Toronto food

123. Toronto Urban Gardens: Growing Your Own Food

May 3, 2011 Heikki Walden

May 3, 2011

Calling all “urban farmers” – explore the growing urban gardening scene tonight at Evergreen Brick Works! In this installment of the GE Cafe Chefs Series: Food for Thought, Anthony Rose, Executive Chef at The Drake Hotel, along with Rebekka Hutton, Urban Agriculture Manager for Evergreen, will help you learn how you can grow your own food at home.

Food security is an increasingly important issue, and growing your own food is a great way to up your food self-sufficiency. Rose’s emphasis on fresh and local ingredients, coupled with Hutton’s urban agriculture expertise, will make for an informative and fascinating evening which will include an interactive cooking demonstration, time to enjoy a meal, and a fascinating discussion about the merits of harvesting your own food right here in Toronto.

Each of the GE Café Chefs Series workshops cost $60 per person, and take place at the Centre for Green Cities from 6-9pm. Register now at the Evergreen Brickworks’ website.

365 Things to Do in Toronto, Green, Toronto, Toronto events

115. Celebrate an Eco-Friendly Easter

April 25, 2011 Heikki Walden

April 25, 2011

Celebrate Easter and Earth Day with the Toronto Zoo’s “Party for the Planet!”

You’ll learn about how you can be an ambassador for living in a more eco-friendly way through programs such as Backyard Naturalists, FrogWatch and the EcoKids Program. The Zoo will partner with Earth Day Canada and twelve Ontario environmental education organizations, providing your family with fun resources for making a positive change in your world. The Toronto Zoo has also partnered with RainBarrel.ca to offer rain barrels at a special reduced rate over the Easter weekend; register for your rain barrel at RainBarrel.ca/torontozoo!

Today is the last day to “Celebrate an Eco-Friendly Easter,” so be sure to join in all the eco-fun at the Tundra Trek area from 10am until 4pm! Meet the Zoo’s recycling duo, Henry and Douale at 1pm, listen to the polar bears keeper talks at 12pm or 2pm, and watch out for “Explorer Bear” at the Zoo’s front entrance at 10am, noon, and 2pm! Admission to the Zoo is $23.00 for ages 13 – 64 years, $17 for seniors, and $13 for children. For more information on this Eco-Easter event, go to www.torontozoo.com.

365 Things to Do in Toronto, Green, Toronto, Toronto events, Toronto farmers' markets, Toronto food

106. Evergreen Brick Works Farmers’ Market

April 16, 2011 Heikki Walden

April 16, 2011

Hosted at the Young Welcome Centre on Saturdays from 9am until 1pm (in the summer the start time is 8am), the Evergreen Brick Works Farmers’ Market features the “best of the season.” Shop for fruits, vegetables, wild fish, meat, cheese, milled flours, eggs, and oils, all grown/raised/produced by local farmers. Purchasing local food is better for the environment, tastes fresher, and is good for your conscience – supporting Ontario farmers is a great way to “green” up your life!

Rhubarb, beets, cabbage, carrots, fiddleheads, parsnips, and many greenhouse-grown fruits and veggies are all in season in April, so visit Evergreen Brick Works and do your produce shopping for the week! Not only will you get your grocery shopping done, you’l have the opportunity to visit Toronto’s new community environmental centre in the heart of the Don Valley. For more information about Evergreen Brick Works, visit http://ebw.evergreen.ca/.

365 Things to Do in Toronto, Green, Toronto, Toronto events

105. Green Living Show

April 15, 2011 Heikki Walden

April 15, 2011

Toronto’s premiere “green” event, the Green Living Show, starts today at the Direct Energy Centre!

Last year, guests included Colin Firth, former Mayor David Miller, and Olympic medalist Clara Hughes, so you can only imagine who the “green celebrities” will be this year! The 2011 Green Living Show has several new attractions, including a TD Energy Fair, Ecomentors Conference, Green Jobs Forum, The Good Eats Market, and The Beer Experience, but “old favourites” such as the Green Business Forum, EcoKids Zone, Cooking Stage, and Green Toronto Awards will also be part of the festivities.

Not only will you have the opportunity to take in fantastic presentations and learn plenty of eco-friendly tips and tricks to “green” your life, 400+ exhibitors will be selling their green wares and services – you can shop ‘til you drop with a clear conscience!

Admission to the Green Living Show is $12 for adults. Want to go for free? Recycle electronic waste at the Show, and you won’t have to pay! For more information on the show, visit www.greenlivingonline.com.

365 Things to Do in Toronto, Green, JUNOs, Toronto, Toronto events

75. Canada Blooms

March 16, 2011 Heikki Walden

March 16, 2011

Celebrating its 15th year, Canada Blooms is Canada’s largest and most prestigious gardening festival! Enjoy six acres of beautiful gardens in full bloom; an annual design, horticultural and floral competition; over 100,000 square feet of shopping that will make every gardener’s green thumb a little greener; four educational stages hosting over 200 hours of seminars, workshops and demonstrations; master gardeners one-on-one sessions; make-and-take workshops, and much more!

This year, in honour of the 40th JUNO Awards, Canada Blooms presents the “JUNO Rocks” Gardens; JUNO-nominated artists have partnered with landscape artists to create personal, “green” interpretations of what rhythm and music means to them. Check out gardens designed by opera-singer Ben Heppner, country-singer Carolyn Dawn Johnson, R&B singer Jully Black, singer-songwriter and environmental activist Sarah Harmer, and a garden inspired by the music of Oscar Peterson, designed with help from his wife and daughter-in-law.

Canada Blooms started yesterday and continues until March 20th. Tickets are $18 and can be purchased online, at ticket outlets, or at the door. For more information on the schedule of events, speakers, workshops, and garden tours, go to the Canada Blooms website.

365 Things to Do in Toronto, Green, Toronto, Toronto events, Toronto museums

74. Water: The Exhibition @ the ROM

March 15, 2011 Heikki Walden

March 15, 2011

It’s safe to say that we Canadians take water for granted. We have easy access to clean drinking water whenever we want it, and in Toronto, we have kilometers of lakeshore to deceive us into believing that water is available to all. Water: The Exhibition reminds us that water is actually a scarce resource for almost a billion people who do not have access to clean drinking water.

Organized by the American Museum of Natural History and the Science Museum of Minnesota in collaboration with the Royal Ontario Museum, Great Lakes Science Center (Cleveland), The Field Museum (Chicago), Instituto Sangari (Brazil), National Museum of Australia, San Diego Natural History Museum and Science Centre Singapore with PUB Singapore, Water: The Exhibition is a worldwide exploration of the power, wonder, and scarcity of water. This exhibit will show you the fragility of freshwater and oceanic environments, and will help you discover what you can do to help conserve water.

The ROM is open today from 10am until 5:30pm; adult admission is $24, seniors and students between 15 and 17 years pay $21, and tickets for children 4 to 14 years are $16. To purchase tickets online, and to learn more about the ROM, go to the ROM’s website.