Evergreen

🔗 Read the full press release at link in bio.

The extreme weather event that swept through the GTA on September 2 brought almost a month’s worth of rain (100mm) in a single day. The storm marks the second so-called “100-year” flood to affect Toronto in just two years, underscoring the need to rethink how cities define and prepare for extreme weather risk.

Like many places in Toronto, Evergreen Brick Works flooded. But here, the site is designed with flooding in mind, and the aftermath of the storm is proving more manageable than it might have otherwise been. It holds important lessons for public infrastructure across the country.

Back-to-school season is here! For students at a school in East Gwillimbury, Ontario, there’s something new waiting for them.🌿

In partnership with York Region and York Catholic District School Board, Evergreen is helping bring a new outdoor classroom to life.

The school ground at Our Lady of Good Counsel Catholic Elementary School was typical of many school grounds: a large open area with little shade, few trees or places for outdoor learning. The new outdoor classroom will create a shaded, natural setting where students can read, write, make art, study science, observe nature or simply spend time outdoors.

“The goal is to create a space that becomes part of everyday school life,” says Michael Ormston-Holloway, Evergreen’s design consultant on the project. “It will also become a community asset, especially because school grounds are often used outside school hours.”

This project builds on the approach behind Evergreen’s Climate Ready Schools program, using nature-based solutions to bring shade, biodiversity, outdoor learning and climate resilience to another school ground.

Do you instinctively head outside for a walk when you’re feeling stressed? There’s science behind that.

Long before co-founding Canada’s national nature prescription program, Melissa Lem experienced those health benefits herself through time spent in the mountains, by the ocean and even at Evergreen Brick Works.

Wanting to get the story out, Evergreen was the very first organization she worked with to turn that knowledge into action.

Fast forward to today, and through Healthy By Nature | PaRx, Learning by Nature, Nature at Work, an initiative of BC Parks Foundation, more than 20,000 regulated health professionals across Canada are prescribing time in nature, with more than two million nature prescriptions issued to date.

Read more about how a personal connection with nature turned into a national nature prescription program. 🔗 link in bio

🌿 Toronto’s ravine system is one of the city’s defining features.

Spanning roughly 45,000 acres, these forests, rivers and trails provide habitat for plants and animals while offering countless opportunities to connect with nature.

As a gateway to the ravines, Evergreen Brick Works is a natural starting point for exploring this incredible network of green public spaces.

So what awaits you?

Whether you’re visiting Toronto or exploring your own backyard, we rounded up eight things to see and do:

1️⃣ Read the landscape’s geological history 🪨
2️⃣ Spot wildlife 🦊
3️⃣ Explore mountain bike trails 🚲
➡️ Head to the link in our bio for the full list

What do you like to see and do in the ravines?

Evergreen Program Director Mike Driedger has written a fantastic op-ed in the National Observer in light of the closure of several Toronto outdoor education centres.

Read on to learn how outdoor play and learning benefits children's physical, mental and social functioning, and why Evergreen and its partners are committed to creating more opportunities for nature-based learning across Canada.

Read the article :https://tinyurl.com/mr4a4b42

Evergreen Program Director Mike Driedger has written a fantastic op-ed in the National Observer in light of the closure of several Toronto outdoor education centres.

Read on to learn how outdoor play and learning benefits children's physical, mental and social functioning, and why Evergreen and its partners are committed to creating more opportunities for nature-based learning across Canada.

Read here: https://www.nationalobserver.com/2026/07/07/opinion/outdoor-play-children-education-importance

Tired of pilot projects that never go anywhere?

After the success of Canada’s first Climate Ready School, we’re ready to scale this model across the country. One of those projects is taking shape at Limestone School of Community Education in Kingston, Ontario.

Evergreen is working with Trophic Design and Limestone District School Board to create a school landscape that supports climate adaptation, biodiversity and Indigenous youth education and training.

From rain gardens and bioswales to learning forests and gathering spaces, the design works with the land rather than against it.

Read the story (link in bio) to learn more about Canada’s next Climate Ready School Ground, supported by RBC and the Peter Gilgan Foundation.

The turtles at Evergreen Brick Works move pretty slow but the first early-bird deadline of the 50/50 raffle is fast approaching!

Buying your tickets before Thursday, June 25 at noon is the only way you’ll be entered into the early-bird draws and the jackpot draw at the end. If you’re going to enter, now is the time!

Early-bird prize #1: An Evergreen Garden Market gift basket of our most-loved home goods and beauty products sure to brighten up your summer.

Early-bird prize #2: 4 tickets to Luzia - Cirque du Soleil in Toronto on Friday, July 24 at 7:30pm.

Every ticket supports our children and youth outdoor programs at Evergreen Brick Works like our summer camps and school visits, ensuring children have access to nature-filled spaces in the city.

Enter now: https://www.rafflebox.ca/raffle/evergreen-summer-2026-5050