App: BeeAware
Hosted in ArcGIS Online:
- BeeAware App: https://www.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=b92a0360398d40fb95f94551159b4000
Mission Statement
Our mission is to support bees and other urban pollinators by empowering Toronto residents to get involved with private and public pollinator garden projects.
Bees and other pollinators like butterflies, moths, and beetles play crucial roles in urban ecology. Their activities support plant life and vegetation, which in turn provide aesthetic and economic value, temperature moderation, wildlife habitats, food production, and a wide variety of other benefits to cities (1). Toronto is home to over 400 species of pollinators (2), but, as is the case throughout the world, bees and other pollinators are in decline.1 While the causes of and solutions to this decline are complex, one way that Toronto residents can support local pollinator populations is by planting a pollinator garden with native plants that attract, feed, and shelter them.
References
- Government of Ontario. (2023, Jan. 10). Pollinator Health. https://www.ontario.ca/page/pollinator-health.
- City of Toronto. (n.d.). Pollinator Protector Strategy. https://www.toronto.ca/services-payments/water-environment/environmentally-friendly-city-initiatives/reports-plans-policies-research/draft-pollinator-strategy/
- PollinateTO. (n.d.). PollinateTO Grants: Native flowers, trees, and shrubs list. https://www.toronto.ca/services-payments/water-environment/environmental-grants-incentives/pollinateto-community-grants/.
Please be sure to also check out the resources compiled by the City of Toronto for more information on how to support native pollinators: https://www.toronto.ca/services-payments/water-environment/live-green-toronto/tips-to-create-a-pollinator-friendly-garden/
Video Presentation
Documentation
Team Members
Sarah L. Reeser: I am a first-year MSc student in Physical Geography at the University of Toronto. My research focuses on developing GIS models to gauge greenspace accessibility in Toronto using visibility analysis. I’m interested in exploring urban spatial relationships in general and learning how to use new GIS tools and techniques to do so. In my previous academic life, I studied medieval and early modern geography and theories of vision, so my current focus allows me to build upon my past research experience while taking my interests in new directions. My hobbies include reading, embroidery, and writing.
Scarlett Rakowska: Scarlett is a second-year MSc student in the Geography & Planning department at the University of Toronto. Her research interests involve green space and urban health. Her current research involves the urban heat island effect in Mississauga by gathering air temperature observations through mobile monitoring on a bicycle and creating a land use regression model to estimate air temperature for the entire city to better understand if air temperature is inequality distributed within marginalized communities. In her free time, Scarlett loves to cook, bake, and hike.
Sana Hashimr: I am a third year undergraduate student majoring in Geographic Information Systems. My hobbies include reading, playing sports, listening to music, and creating different forms of art.