Go wild at Saskatoon’s NatureCity Festival
Last year, I finally got a chance to see a burrowing owl up close, something I have always wanted to do. I didn’t have to travel far to see the little fellow, who was a featured entertainer at Saskatoon’s first NatureCity Festival. I even got to touch him.
Following on the success of the 2013 festival, Wild About Saskatoon — an informal group of nature lovers — in collaboration with 80 local organizations and businesses, is set to launch the second edition this weekend. The unique made-in-Saskatoon event will run from May 25 to 31, with a festival warm-up this Saturday starting at 10 a.m. at the Saskatoon Farmers Market.
The warm-up, which will be a great way to orient yourself to the full week of activities, will feature wildlife exhibits, information booths, skateboarding demonstrations, face-painting and some of my favourite musicians, including Timothy Doran and Magik Radix.
At 1:45 p.m., join the parade and follow the brass band from the farmers market to the Roxy Theatre, arriving just in time to hear the first of three keynote speakers that will present during the week.
I’ll focus on these three speakers, but the festival provides a wide variety of programming for all ages, including birding, flower, butterfly and animal walks, tours of the northeast swale, art exhibitions, medicine walks, a pop-up nature museum at the Broadway Theatre, urban agriculture tours, river paddles, urban bee-keeping, music, a permaculture tour, a community supper and stargazing at the university observatory. Full details are at wildaboutsaskatoon.org.
The keynote speakers will convey the intent of the festival, helping us become more aware of nature within Saskatoon. Cities can be areas of biodiversity, providing niches for hundreds of species — including humans. All keynotes will be at the Roxy Theatre: ■ Cam Collyer: Why ( Young) People Need Nature — Saturday at 2:30 p.m.
Research tells us that children are spending more time indoors, causing demonstrable harm to their physical and mental health. Find out how communities across the country are reversing this trend. Prepare to be inspired by Collyer, a program director at Evergreen, a Canadian charity connecting people and nature in cities. Collyer oversees Evergreen’s national suite of programs that connect children and nature. This includes an award-winning national school ground greening program, along with the Green City Adventure camp and school visit programs at Evergreen Brick Works. The talk will also feature input from a new generation of local youth leaders. ■ Grant Pearsell: The International Urban Biodiversity Movement — May 26 at 7:30 p.m.
Dozens of cities around the world are taking steps to conserve biodiversity — the variety and splendour of life — in urban landscapes. If the City of Edmonton can sign on to the urban biodiversity movement, why not Saskatoon? Pearsell is an internationally recognized and award-winning leader in the urban biodiversity movement. He has been an invited speaker on urban biodiversity issues on five continents, chaired and participated in a wide variety of technical committees and boards and has been published in both academic and professional journals and books. Pearsell, the director of parks and biodiversity for the City of Edmonton, will be coming here directly from meetings on urban biodiversity in Singapore. This presentation will also feature a local perspective from Gary Pederson of the City of Saskatoon. ■ Michelle Molnar: The Value of Urban Wetlands — May 28 at 7:30 p.m.
Wetlands are among the planet’s most productive habitats. They also have a measurable monetary value to cities as green infrastructure. Learn why conserving wetlands makes economic and ecological sense. Molnar is an environmental economist and policy analyst at the David Suzuki Foundation. She leads the Lower Mainland Natural Capital Project, which focuses on the conservation of natural capital using various tools of ecological economics, policy analysis and public outreach. She also teaches an introduction to ecological economics at the British Columbia Institute of Technology through the sustainable business leadership program. Barb Hanbidge of Ducks Unlimited will prove the local perspective.
There is also a school program running weekdays.