In July and August – just when the city was engulfed in occasional heatwaves – participants gathered in the comfort of their homes to attend Parks Canada’s Learn To Camp virtual workshops, which were conducted over 4 Fridays. Participants learned more about:

• The Rouge: Canada’s First National Urban Park , why is it unique, and how it protects a rich assembly of natural, cultural, and agricultural heritage.
• Camping for the first time with an introduction to the necessary equipment, cooking in the outdoors and how to create a safe campfire.
• Camping with Wildlife Nearby and how to be smart around bears, bugs, coyotes, snakes, and even turtles!
• How to Protect Themselves and the Environment with tips on staying safe, and being respectful, in the outdoors – whether we are camping for a week, or hiking for a day

 

These four workshops were done in collaboration with 3 other community agencies in the Chinatown-Kensington neighbourhood: Scadding Court Community Centre, The Cross-Cultural Services Association and University Settlement. The 4 Community Program Workers were on rotation each week to provide the Mandarin interpretation for the participants who enjoyed these workshops immensely and found them to be very practical and informative.

A big THANK YOU to Parks Canada’s Learn To Camp team for making these sessions possible !