Toronto, Nov. 23, 2020 — Seneca’s Newnham Campus in Toronto will be greener and more natural, thanks to new funding from the City of Toronto.
Seneca has received $76,653 through the City’s Greening Partnership Grant to plant 1,220 shrubs and trees native to Ontario at Newnham Campus (Finch Ave. and Hwy. 404) by 2022.
The funding will help to create a more sustainable and naturalized landscape on campus, helping reduce Seneca’s carbon footprint and creating more green spaces for students, employees and the community to work, study and relax.
“By planting native trees and naturalizing our campus we are acknowledging that we share the land with our Indigenous Peoples and that we respect their sustainable teaching and land use values,” said Don Forster, Seneca’s Senior Manager, Sustainability, Groundskeeping, Custodial, Waste Management and Support Services. “Planting trees also promotes biodiversity by attracting butterflies, birds, bees and squirrels and many other insects and small animals.”
The program builds on previous initiatives that have resulted in hundreds of trees and shrubs added to the campus.
The tree planting program will include education for Seneca students through hands-on learning opportunities in the Environmental Landscape Management, Environmental Technician and Environmental Technology programs. The project will also support over-seeding of lawn areas with a naturalized fescue blend while replacing annuals with perennial plants.
This new tree planting program is the latest initiative undertaken under Sustainable Seneca, which promotes and embeds sustainability in the Seneca culture, how business is conducted and the values and learnings imparted to students.
Sustainable Seneca has several areas of focus including, green building, energy and climate change and waste reduction.