Neighbours Helping Neighbours

Sometimes change seems very small, almost invisible unless you are watching carefully.  Like the tiny crocus leaves pushing up through the earth, at first they look inconsequential.  But given the right conditions, they will grow and bloom and be pollinated.  Their bulbs will multiply under the earth and create new life.  With the news so full of extreme behaviours from world leaders and people whose anger spills into hate, I find myself watching carefully for small things that bring hope just as I scan the spring soil for new signs of life.  Here are some of the things I found while looking carefully last week.

A friend told me that she was going to climb the CN Tower in Toronto to raise money for the World Wildlife Fund.  I thought that was pretty amazing since she is well into her sixties and has a disabled husband to look after a few hours north of the city.  But she has overcome several health concerns herself to run half marathons and feels she is ready for the challenge.

The next day I read an article in the Toronto Metro about the World Wildlife Fund Canada  in preparation for the fundraiser.  I paid close attention to it because my friend was taking part.  WWF-Canada’s CEO David Miller was spreading a message of hope.  Although environmental challenges are daunting, Miller says that everyone can do something to help, often in their own backyards.  “People want hope,” he says.  “They really want to be part of something and know what they can do to make a change.” (Toronto Metro News April 7-9, 2017)

People in the city can protect and restore the urban tree canopy.  This decreases temperatures and provides habitats for animals as well as being good for humans as well.  Another thing that people can do is to join with others to support conservation efforts through financial donations.  As well, Miller recommends planting native species in the backyard.  WWF – Canada has an In the Zone Garden Program that encourages people to grow native species for pollinators, birds, amphibians and small mammals. 

Miller suggests talking to your neighbours and acting collectively. Although these things seem relatively small, people can actually make a difference and when joining with others, that difference becomes bigger and bigger. 

Another article in the paper was titled “Our Coyote Neighbours”. The article said that cities are great places for coyotes to exist and that people need to learn to co-exist with them.   Coyote Watch Canada  is a grassroots charity that advocates for “positive wildlife experiences.”  On their facebook page they write.  “Coyotes forge lasting family bonds and are devoted parents. In a moment can one ponder that coyotes want the same things as we do; shelter, warmth, food, the ability to live freely without persecution to raise their families and to live an authentic life.” 

 The article said that Coyote Watch is holding information sessions in Toronto to help educate city dwellers on how to co-exist with coyotes by keeping garbage under control and supervising family pets.  They also caution people not to feed coyotes.  They have plenty to eat and prefer rodents and rabbits, thus keeping these species under control and playing an important part in the urban ecosystem.  

Our DNA doesn`t make us demons... just uniquely essential.

Coyotes in the city have often been feared.  Seeing them as neighbours who are part of the ecosystem that you live in is actually a big change in thinking.  And coyotes who are clever and resilient and able to live in close proximity to humans can teach us to co-exist, be resilient and take care of our part of the ecosytem as well.

The last article I read was about Snapping Turtles in Ontario.  After pressure from concerned citizens and conservation groups including the Ottawa Field Naturalist Club, the Ontario government has banned the hunting of snapping turtles.  The government website that asked for input on this proposed change received over 10,000 messages supporting the ban and only a few who were against it.  This let the government know that the public would support the legislation and it went ahead and made it law.  Sometimes, it seems that governments just need a little encouragement to take action.

Nesting female snapping turtle at the Wye Marsh Nature Centre

Snapping turtles like most turtles in Ontario are threatened.  And of course, now that nesting season is approaching, people need to make sure they don`t hit them when they cross the roads and highways.  Extra caution in nesting season is another way we can help these neighbours.

So, all these little things that we can easily fit into our lives get bigger when we work with others, either next door, locally, nationally or internationally.  We are certainly not powerless and there is no place for hopelessness despite the stories that we see on TV.  This story of neighbours helping each other, be they coyotes, birds, bees, turtles, trees or humans, is a story as old as the earth and it can still be our story here and now as well.