Imagine a future where community well-being and the environment thrive together, supported by forward-thinking municipal policies
Throughout Canada, people are turning to habitat gardening as a tangible and hope-filled response to the greatest challenges of our time: biodiversity loss, climate change and humanity’s alienation from wild species. But in some communities, outdated municipal bylaws and enforcement policies limit the potential of habitat gardens to positively transform our cities, towns and society.
In response to this contradiction, the Canadian Society of Landscape Architects, Canadian Wildlife Federation, David Suzuki Foundation, Ecological Design Lab at Toronto Metropolitan University and renowned author and environmental advocate Lorraine Johnson sent an open letter to municipal staff, elected officials and related associations in support of bylaw reform.
We are grateful for the positive responses received so far and are excited to continue this important conversation. Since the release of our Open Letter, the Bylaws for Biodiversity project has been getting media attention from across the country. The following articles are just a few examples:
- 6 Projects Pushing the Boundaries of Sustainable Design. Sophie Sobol, Azure Magazine
- Freedom to bee messy: the push to change lawn laws. Natasha Bulowski, Canada’s National Observer
- The case for active stewardship. Domini Clark and Kat Tancock, Rewilding Magazine
- Free our Front Yards. Lorraine Johnson, Spacing. Canadian Urbanism Uncovered
Join us for a national conversation!
We would like to invite you to an upcoming virtual event:
Bylaws for biodiversity: Supporting habitat gardens in towns and cities
Thursday, November 21, 2024, 2 to 3:30 PM ET
Co-hosted by the David Suzuki Foundation and the CSLA, this online discussion will provide an opportunity for municipal staff and elected officials to connect with one another, share experiences, and explore strategies for effective bylaw reform. The event will include brief presentations from experts and a facilitated discussion. We look forward to your participation in this national conversation.
Note: this event will be held in English with French translation services provided.
Check out the new Bylaws for Biodiversity resources!
The Ecological Design Lab at Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) recently published new resources as part of their ongoing Bylaws for Biodiversity project. This includes the comprehensive Bylaws for Biodiversity Report: Barriers and Opportunities for Naturalized Gardens, which offers an in-depth examination of the current policy landscape in Canada, and the Toolkit for Municipalities which supports staff in the development and implementation of evidence-based bylaw enforcement mechanisms.
Partner Organizations on this Initiative include:
DAVID SUZUKI FOUNDATION 
Founded in 1990, the David Suzuki Foundation (DSF) is a national, bilingual non-profit organization headquartered in Vancouver, with offices in Toronto and Montreal. We are guided by the fundamental truth that we are interconnected with nature, and with each other. What we do to the planet and its living creatures, we do to ourselves. Through research, education, policy analysis and community engagement, we work to protect and restore the natural environment, and help create a sustainable Canada. We regularly collaborate with non-profit and community organizations, all levels of government, businesses and individuals. Learn more about DSF here.
CANADIAN WILDLIFE FEDERATION
The Canadian Wildlife Federation is a national, not-for-profit charitable organization dedicated to conserving Canada’s wildlife and habitats for the use and enjoyment of all. By spreading knowledge of human impacts on wildlife and the environment, carrying out actions to conserve and restore species and habitats, developing and delivering conservation education programs, advocating for changes to government policy and programs, and co-operating with like-minded partners, CWF encourages a future in which Canadians can live in harmony with nature.
ECOLOGICAL DESIGN LAB
Located at Toronto Metropolitan University, the Ecological Design Lab connects people to nature in cities. We “think, make, and do” collaborative design-research and practice, developing nature-based solutions (NbS) for biodiversity recovery and climate resilience.
LORRAINE JOHNSON
Lorraine is the author of numerous books on gardening with native plants and creating habitat gardens, including A Garden for the Rusty-Patched Bumblebee (co-written with Sheila Colla), 100 Easy-to-Grow Native Plants for Canadian Gardens, and Tending the Earth: A Gardener’s Manifesto. Lorraine’s work focuses on enhancing biodiversity; advocating for the reform of grass and weeds bylaws; supporting urban food production; and on land stewardship as relationship-building in the context of reconciliation.