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Success Stories

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Project Image: GreenHere Harvests: Community Orchard in the City
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“As the principal of St. Rita Catholic School, I strongly support GreenHere’s efforts to promote education and local stewardship through environmental initiatives. Through increasing forestry development and awareness, GreenHere provides a model for ongoing environmental conservation and education for the schools and residents in our community. ”
— Principal Anna Totten, St. Rita Catholic School

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Project Profile

GreenHere Harvests: Community Orchard in the City
Toronto, ON
RAISED: $804

GreenHere is a registered charity dedicated to increasing green space in Toronto’s Davenport neighbourhood. This project will help low income residents access fresh fruit in their communities through community harvesting. 

Our neighbourhood, Davenport in Toronto, is one of the most diverse in Canada with 140 different ethno-cultural groups!  With five Toronto Community Housing projects and countless rental properties, the neighbourhood is also home to many lower income households.

Over 54% of our community are newcomers with English as their second language, and 25% of family incomes are below $20,000.  At the same time, the community lacks greenspace – only 23% compared to the average Toronto neighbourhood, which adds to the many stresses residents experience.   

GreenHere Harvests, with your help, wants to increase local knowledge and care of fruit trees and develop a fresh free food source for residents, community agencies and homeowners.  A community-managed orchard will help feed lower income residents and welcome neighbourhood environmental action!  We will welcome all residents to participate by providing multilingual information and staff fluent in some of the many local languages.
 
With the support of your donations a certified agrologist will work with area fruit tree owners to select, monitor and prune 100-150 back yard fruit trees, with plans for community harvesting of 25-35 trees in 2012. In addition, four seasonal workshops on fruit tree management will be open to all community members.

With many opportunities to participate in fruit tree care and harvest activities, we will welcome residents, work to improve social cohesion, community engagement, and newcomer integration.

In Davenport, local streets such are virtually treeless and unshaded. They were widened to accommodate bus lanes which are no longer in use. Houses sit very close to the sidewalk, often with inadequate space for large canopy shade trees. Here in these underprivileged Davenport communities, many people cannot afford to vacation outside of the city, and green spaces are subsequently many people's main experience of nature.

How your donations will make an impact: 
$2,500 – Certified agrologist hired part-time for winter 2011-2012 fruit tree outreach and assessment as a potential harvest tree.
$1,600 – Fruit tree care workshops (one per season, 4 x $400) on how to properly care for, prune and manage fruit trees. Winter 2011-2012: outdoor pruning demonstration and fruit tree shaping for cultivation & harvest. Spring/Summer 2012: proper organic soil and disease prevention and pest management strategies (black knot/pear rust). 
$500 – Educational workshop packages and communication materials.
$400 – Fruit harvesting equipment (health & safety vests, ladders, baskets, scales).

To top it off, this project bridges generational gaps in environmental action by inviting youth, adults and the elderly to work together in their community.  We could really use your help to make this project a reality.

GreenHere: Community Reforestation and Greening Initiatives

GreenHere GreenHere is a registered charity dedicated to increasing green space in Toronto’s Davenport neighbourhood 


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