Toronto | Traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishinaabeg, the Haudenosaunee, and the Huron-Wendat – Starting on Friday April 21st and continuing through the weekend, more than 40 local groups from across Ontario will be hosting rallies, parades, hikes, bike rides, clean-ups and educational events as part of the Yours To Protect Weekend.
The events will highlight environmental threats to local natural areas that are increasing because of the actions of Ontario’s provincial government. They will call on MPPs, municipal leaders and MPs to make stronger environmental protection a key priority in their decisions.
Key concerns to be highlighted include:
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Protecting the Greenbelt
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Protecting lakes, rivers and wetlands
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Stopping car-dependent sprawl
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Stopping Highway 413 and the Bradford Bypass
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Building walkable – and bikeable! – communities
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Reducing plastic waste
WHO: The Yours to Protect movement is a coalition of environmental and community groups fighting for better environmental policies in the province of Ontario.
WHAT: “Yours to Protect Weekend” Days of Action, featuring more than 40 events from Grand Bend in the west to Ottawa in the east. New events are being registered every day.
WHERE: A map of all events, with additional information about attending each event, is available here: https://environmentaldefence.
WHEN: April 21, 22 and 23. Exact times and dates vary by location.
Adjala-Tosorontio
Ketchum House Earth Day Tours
April 22, 10:00 am – 3:00 pm
Ketchum House, 2713 Concession Rd 3
Public tours of this eco-home have been happening every Earth Day for 20 years.
Alliston
Alliston Community Clean-up
April 22, 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm
153 John W. Taylor Ave, New Tecumseth (John W. Taylor Park beside Boyne River Public School)
Bayfield
Bayfield Earth Day 2023
April 22, 9:00 am – 3:30 pm
St Andrews United Church, 6 The Square, Bayfield, ON
A day of music and celebration, featuring Alexandra Ho, delegate from U of Waterloo at the COP27 Climate Conference in Egypt. Events include a hike, clean-up and activities for children.
Web: https://www.bluebayfield.ca
Belleville
Parade for our Wetland Critters
April 22, 2:00 pm
Herchimer Street Boat Launch, Herchimer Str. Belleville
Web: https://www.facebook.com/
Bolton
ecoCaledon Repair Cafe
April 22, 10:00 am – 2:00 pm
7 Rotarian Way, Bolton
Free repairs for broken items, bike safety workshop and more.
Contact: info@ecoCaledon.org
Brampton
Earth Day 2023: 2nd Annual Grow Green Environmental Celebration
April 22, 12:00 – 4:00 pm
Norton Place Park, 170 Clark Blvd
Local grassroots groups, including Brampton Environmental Alliance and Community Climate Council, will have info booths sharing their work at this large city-run event .
Contact: David Laing, david@daylelaing.com, (416) 402-3778; Miranda Baksh, mbaksh@environmentaldefence.ca
Pop-Up Earth Day Rally
April 23, 10:00 am
500 Ray Lawson Blvd, Brampton
Stop Sprawl Peel will be hosting a rally to oppose Bill 23, the removal of land from the Greenbelt and ongoing sprawl in Peel Region.
Contact: Rahul Mehta, Stopsprawlpeel@gmail.com
Burlington
BurlingtonGreen Earth Day Event
April 22, 11:00 am – 4:00 pm
1094 Lakeshore Road, Burlington, Ontario
Eco-activities including seed ball making, a community clean-up, a repair cafe and more at the BurlingtonGreen Eco-Hub headquarters at the beach.
Contact: Amy Schnurr, bg@burlingtongreen.org
Carleton Place
Earthfest
April 22, 11:00 am – 3:00 pm
Market Square, 7 Beckwith St., Carleton Place
Live music, workshops and children’s activities, including face-painting.
Web: https://www.facebook.com/
Collingwood
Earth Day Fair
April 22 10:30 am
250 Hume St., Collingwood, ON L9Y 3P1
Collingwood Climate Action Team hosting a fair with crafts, live music, children’s activities and carbon footprint workshops.
Web: https://www.
Elmvale
Earth Day Garlic Mustard Pull
April 22, 10:00 am
Tiny Marsh Provincial Wildlife Area, 500 Tiny-Flos Townline Tiny L0L 1P0
Web: https://www.mtmconservation.
Contact: Kate Harries, info@mtmconservation.org, (705) 322-2545
Fonthill
2nd Annual Rally on Earthday call for Action (AREA)
April 22, 1:00 pm – 3:30 pm
Peace Park, 20 Pelham Square, Fonthill, ON
Theme of the rally is to protect wetlands, water and mitigate climate change
Web: https://Pelhampath.ca
Grand Bend
Demo for Nature
April 21, 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm
Intersection of Highways 21 and 81, Grand Bend, Ontario
Peaceful demo to draw attention to the Yours to Protect campaign. Please bring your own signs.
Web: https://www.facebook.com/
Guelph
Earth Day Guelph Celebration
April 22, 12:00 – 3:00 pm
City Hall, 1 Carden Street, Guelph
Children’s art table, spoken word poet, drumming and guest speakers. Climate Action Opportunities with Emerge Guelph.
Web: https://emergeguelph.ca/join-
Halton Hills
Halton Hills Earth Day event
April 22, 10:00am – 4:00 pm
Acton Arena and Community Centre 415 Queen St., Acton
Halton Hills Climate Action will be hosting an info booth and Bike Swap as part of the Halton Hills Earth Day event.
Hamilton
Earth Day Greenbelt Protection Rally
April 22, 9:00 am – 9:45 am
Intersection of Mohawk Road at Magnolia Drive
This youth rally is for the protection of our farmland and natural areas and against forced urban expansion! We will gather at the intersection with signs and banners, we will have speakers and music playing throughout the event!
Web: https://www.instagram.com/wmt.
Food for the Rest of Us Film Screening with National Farmers Union
April 23, 2:00pm
1014 King St W, Hamilton, ON L8S 1L4
Web: https://www.thewestdale.ca/
Contact: Michelle Tom, michtom20@gmail.com
McMaster Carbon Sink Forest Tree Planting
April 22, 12:00 – 3:00 pm
1213 Wilson Street East, Hamilton
The McMaster Centre for Climate Change, in collaboration with Nature at McMaster, the Academic Sustainability Programs Office, and Trees for Hamilton, are working to develop a model forest. The goal of this event is to plant 300 trees that will gradually develop the McMaster Carbon Sink Forest.
Mountview Park Clean Up
April 22, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Contact: Kojo Damptey, ofkdamptey@hotmail.com, (289) 921-5294
Hamilton (Dundas)
Lower Spencer Creek Clean-up
April 22, 10:00 am – 12:00 pm
Join Action 13 for a community clean-up. Meet at Cootes Trail Parking by the bridge where Spencer Creek goes under Cootes Drive.
Web: https://action13.ca/events
Contact: 13forAction@gmail.com
Holland Landing
Rally for a healthy Lake Simcoe and York Region
April 23, 1:30 – 3:00 pm
55 Grist Mill Rd., Holland Landing, York Region
Join Stop Sprawl York Region, the Rescue Lake Simcoe Coalition and members of your community who advocate for positive change. Learn about Greenbelt grabs, Lake Simcoe & the Bradford Bypass from speakers.
Kingston
Earth Day Celebration
April 22, 1:00 – 4:00 pm
McBurney Park
Join New Climate Stories and other local organizations, including No Clearcuts Kingston, on Earth Day as we use art to celebrate the planet that we love and come up with creative ways to fight for political change and combat the climate crisis.
Web: https://newclimatestories.
Kitchener
Earth Day Bike Ride
April 23; 2:00 – 3:30 pm
200 King St W, Kitchener, ON
Ground Up Waterloo Region is hosting a family friendly Earth Day group bike ride. Free tune-ups available.
Web: https://mobile.twitter.com/
London
Earthfest 2023
April 22, 12:00 – 5:00 pm
Citi Plaza-355 Wellington St/Central Atrium
London Environmental Network and other local groups will be at Earthfest 2023.
London (Dorchester)
Annual Millpond & Thames River Clean-up
April 22, 8:30 -10:00 am
Millpond Dam, corner of Mill Rd & Hamilton Rd, Dorchester, Ontario N0L 1G2
Mississauga
Pop-Up Rally
April 21, 11:00 am – 1:00 pm
Outside MPP Randy Cuzetto’s Office, 120 Lakeshore W.
Pop-up rally to protect the Greenbelt and oppose Bill 23 at MPP Randy Cuzetto’s office.
Earth Day Celebration
April 22, 12:00 – 2:00pm
1340 Willowvale Gardens, Mississauga, ON L5V 2C6
Join Sustainable Mississauga and a host of other local and regional environmental groups at the City of Mississauga Earth Day Celebration! Come by our booth to learn more about urban sprawl, Highway 413 and solutions for our community and ways to have your say. The City will also be leading 30-minute tours in the adjacent Creditview Wetland – one of the last remaining natural wetlands in the city.
Contact: Rahul Mehta, sustain.sauga@gmail.com
Earth Day Slow Roll
April 23, 2:00 – 5:00 pm
1129 Swinbourne Dr, Mississauga, ON (meeting beside the playground)
Join Sustainable Mississauga for a “Slow Roll” (slow-paced group bike ride) as we tour along bike paths and lanes in the Meadowvale, Britannia and East Credit parts of the city. Along the way, we will stop and see examples of conservation, restoration, and degradation of our urban environment.
Contact: Rahul Mehta, sustain.sauga@gmail.com
Oakville
Greenbelt Rally at MPP Stephen Crawford’s Office
April 23, 12:00 – 1:00 pm
Oakville Town Square
We’ll be meeting at the corner of George St. and Lakeshore to raise awareness about unnecessary development in the Greenbelt, as well as the urgent need to protect green space throughout Halton and stand with our Indigenous allies and land defenders. From the Town Square in Oakville we’ll be walking west to end at MPP Stephen Crawford’s office on Rebecca Street.
Orangeville
Yours To Protect Earth Day Weekend March (Sylvia Jones’ Office)
April 21, 2:00 – 3:00 pm
229 Broadway Avenue, Orangeville
The march will start at the parking lot beside 229 Broadway Avenue, across from the Shell gas station, proceed down Broadway Avenue to Sylvia Jones constituency office, and then end in front of the Town Hall. We are hopeful that everyone who is concerned about the development on the Greenbelt, Hwy 413 and the Bradford bypass and Bill 23 will come out to join us.
Orillia
Earth Day Community Garbage Cleanup
Meet at Couchiching Beach Park (parking lot off Jarvis St.)
April 22, 10:00am – 12:00pm
Web: https://fb.me/e/2PZqnF0B8
Contact: Madeleine Fournier, greenorillia@gmail.com
Ottawa
Earth Day Celebration
April 22, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm
1451 Coldrey Ave. Ottawa, ON
Children’s activities, specialty recycling, bike tune-ups from Bike Ottawa, native seeds from OSEAN and Friends of Carlington Woods.
Web: https://
Owen Sound
Earth Day Grey Bruce
Owen Sound Farmers Market, 88 8th St East, Owen Sound
April 22, 12:45 – 5:00 pm
Music, children’s activities, presentations and more.
Web: https://www.facebook/
Contact: Danuta Valleau, earthdaygb22@gmail.com
Perth
P’Earth Day Parade
April 22, 11:45 am
Crystal Palace, Perth
Route: across to Gore St, up to Foster St, to Wilson St to the Big Ben statue and through Stewart Park.
Peterborough
OWS / B!KE Spring Tour 2023
April 22, 2:00 – 4:00 pm
293 George St N, Peterborough, ON, K9J 3H3
We are having a bicycle ride to our two sites, where we’ll do cleanup, repost signs, provide tours and then return for a celebration. We are starting and ending in the alleyway behind B!KE off King St just west of George St.
Web: https://www.facebook.com/
Contact: info@owstewards.ca
Pickering
Rally to save the Greenbelt
April 22, 2:00 – 3:00 pm
1550 Kingston Road, Pickering (MPP Bethlenfalvy’s Office)
Bring your #HandsOffTheGreenbelt and #SaveDRAP signs and gather beside Kingston Road to send a loud message to MPP Bethlenfalvy that the people of Pickering want the Duffins Rouge Ag Preserve back!
Web: https://fb.me/e/3z6fnCirn
Contact: Alexis, Whalen, stopsprawldurham@gmail.com
Pickering (Whitevale)
April 22, 10:00 am – 2:00 pm
Whitevale Park,
Hamlet of Whitevale
Live music, bird walk, sign-waving and other events directly within the Duffins Rouge Agricultural Preserve.
Contact: whitevalemarsh@gmail.com
Richmond Hill
Protect the Greenbelt Rally
April 22, 1:00 – 3:00pm
13085 Yonge St #201, Richmond Hill, ON L4E 3S8
Let’s tell our MPPs that residents of Richmond Hill want the Greenbelt protected. Bring your own signs.
Web: https://liveablerichmondhill.
Stayner
Earth Day at the Clearview Eco Park
April 22, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm
300 Mowat St N, Stayner, ON L0M 1S0
Educational activities at the Eco Park.
Web: https://www.facebook.com/
Stratford
Green Futures: Earth Day Street Party
April 22, 11:30 am – 2:00 pm
Market Square Stratford
Come to a day of music, food, art, giveaways, bike tune-ups, and eco-community.
Contact: Bill James-Abra, bill.jamesabra@gmail.com
Thornbury
Repair Café
April 22, 9:00 am – 12:00 pm
Grace United Church, 140 Bruce St. S., Thornbury, ON N0H 2P0
Community Clean-Up
April 22, 2:00 – 4:00 pm
The Town of The Blue Mountains Town Hall, 32 Mill Street, Box 310 Thornbury
Community clean-up for all ages; garbage bags will be provided; please bring gloves and a water bottle.
Toronto (Black Creek)
Earth Day st BCCF Black Creek Community Farm
April 22, 11:00 am – 2:30 pm
Join us for a day of community building and land stewardship at Black Creek Community Farm’s Earth Day event!
Web: https://www.instagram.com/p/
Waubaushene
Talpines Tay Trail Spring Clean Up
April 23
22 Old Cottage Lane, Waubaushene
Contact: Waubaushene Talpines Tay, taytalpines@gmail.com
Community Garden Soil Turning/Plant Planning
April 22, 1:00 pm
Waubaushene Veteran’s (Children’s) Park on Pine St., Waubaushene
Web: https://www.talpines.ca/
For more information about Yours to Protect Weekend, please visit: https://environmentaldefence.
For background information about the Yours to Protect movement, please visit: https://yourstoprotect.ca/
ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE (environmentaldefence.ca): Environmental Defence is a leading Canadian environmental advocacy organization that works with government, industry and individuals to defend clean water, a safe climate and healthy communities.
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For more information or to request an interview, please contact:
Brittany Harris, Environmental Defence, media@environmentaldefence.ca
Or the media contacts listed above for each event.
