Seeding Stewardship Program

How to get involved

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  Form a steward group

  Create a steward group to support nature-based solutions by:

  • Caring year-round for 1 of our available sites
  • Managing invasive species
  • Recruiting support
  • Activating the space

  We’ll provide you with training and resources to become a leader in naturalized landscape maintenance.   

  • Learn more about the program and how we can support you as a stewardship leader PDF file (3 MB)
  • Apply to be a stewardship leader PDF file (142 KB)
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  Volunteer for an existing stewardship group

  Volunteer your time with an existing nature-based solution’s stewardship group. This may include participating in work parties, planting, or supporting community outreach events.

  Sign up to volunteer

  1. Review our map to find the site nearest you.
  2. Email [email protected] to tell us what site you’re interested in.

  You can also sign up for our newsletter to learn about volunteer opportunities across Seeding Stewardship sites.

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  Join a community science team

  Community science invites community members to work alongside scientists to explore local environmental challenges and solutions.

  Volunteer with one of our teams to help monitor and report on how rain gardens are performing across Vancouver. These specially designed, bowl-shaped gardens capture rainwater and use plants and soil to filter out pollutants before the water returns to the ground.

  Learn more about the community science teams

Locations available for stewardship volunteers

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  Pine St Rain Gardens

  

  Location: Pine St and W 7th Ave 

  Pine St between W 7th Ave and W 8th Ave is designed as a park-like street, offering:

  • Connections between green spaces
  • Shared spaces for different natural habitats
  • Integrated rainwater management systems
  • Dedicated pedestrian walkways
  • Cycling routes for improved mobility

  In 2021, 3 curbside gardens and 3 rain gardens were established, improving community biodiversity and rainwater management.

  There is an opportunity to steward these gardens and help to maximize their ecological, climate adaptation, and public benefits. 

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  Memorial Park South Pollinator Garden

  

  Location: 5955 Ross St 

  In 2019, after acquiring 2 residential properties next to the park, the Park Board and community volunteers installed a pollinator garden.

  The garden improves the park's biodiversity, which also includes a wetland and mature forest stands.

  It is located on a bike route and is fully accessible with a bench for park users to enjoy the garden in all seasons.  

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  China Creek Park North Pollinator Meadow

  Location: 1001 E 7th Ave

  The Park Board installed this pollinator garden in 2019, and community volunteers helped steward it in 2023.

  China Creek Park was named for the Chinese settlers who lived, gardened, and fished along the banks of the creek that once flowed through the site as water made its way to False Creek. Unfortunately, the deep ravine of the creek was used as a landfill in the 1920’s and 1930’s and the creek diverted into a pipe in the 1950’s.

  This park now hosts sport fields, a playground, washrooms, and a cultural learning garden.

  It is located on the Central Valley Greenway and has a steep accessible pathway with benches for park users to enjoy in all seasons.    

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  Ontario and 42nd Rain Gardens

  

  Location: W 42 Ave and Ontario St

  In 2021, 4 rain gardens on Ontario St between E 42 Ave and E 43 Ave were rehabilitated to:

  • Improve rainwater management performance
  • Support, and ultimately enhance water quality and climate resilience

  These gardens feature Indigenous plants and others that can withstand pollutants. They incorporate specialized soils to filter out pollutants from rainwater, while adding important habitat for pollinators.

  Located in a quaint residential neighbourhood and in front of a school, these rain gardens provide:

  • Neighbourhood beautification
  • Pollinator habitat
  • Educational outreach opportunities

  It has the potential to be a living classroom, with opportunities for the community members to connect with and learn about nature in the city.   

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  Tupper Rainway

  

  Location: E 23rd Ave and Carolina St

  Nestled next to Sir Charles Tupper Secondary School, this community space features 2 rain gardens revamped in 2021, complemented by a bikeway.

  In addition to fostering biodiversity, the area has several benches and a spacious central gathering spot, providing an inviting setting for community engagement and activities.

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  Woodland and 2nd Rain Garden

  Location: Woodland Dr and E 14th Ave

  Woodland and 2nd has been transformed into a park-like street that mimics natural ecology to manage water and land.

  This project integrates rain gardens alongside a bike lane to bolster community resilience.

  The site features:

  • Native and climate-adaptive plants
  • Weirs crafted from reclaimed granite sidewalks
  • Interpretive signage
  • A vibrant street mural

  Situated next to Alice Towley Park, the area provides opportunities for:

  • Biodiversity enhancement
  • Community gatherings
  • Programming
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  Woodland and 14th Rain Gardens

  Location: Woodland Dr and E 14th Ave

  Six rain gardens adorn the 4 corners of this quaint intersection, helping to filter rainwater pollutants while contributing to local biodiversity.

  Situated on a bike-friendly corridor nearby to Clark Park, these rain gardens provide opportunities for neighbours to connect with and learn about nature.

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  Riley Park Rain Garden

  Location: 50 E 30th Ave

  The land that Riley Park is located on an extinct volcano and was a forest before colonization. Pioneers logged the area in the 1890’s to create a community of quarry workers.  

  The park was developed during the construction of Hillcrest Community Centre and includes:

  • Sport fields
  • Playgrounds
  • Community gardens
  • Weekend farmers’ markets
  • Leisure spaces (Passive use areas)
  • A raingarden that captures rainwater from the surrounding area
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  Trout Lake Rain Garden

  Location: 3360 Victoria Dr

  Trout Lake and surrounding bog and streams have been an important part of local First Nation cultural and food harvesting practices since time immemorial.

  Urbanization and colonization, including the extraction of water from Trout Lake to run Hastings Mill, has altered this land and water system.  

  Now a cherished park for dog walkers, sports, recreation, and celebration, the park also maintains wetland and raingarden areas for bird habitat and year-round rainwater storage.

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  Vanier Pollinator Meadow

  Location: 1270 Chestnut St

  The Vanier Pollinator Meadow is a beautiful, naturalized space within the larger Vanier Park.

  Located next to the Vancouver Academy of Music, this meadow provides important food and habitat to both nesting and migratory pollinators.

  This site is the new home of the former Pine St Pollinator Park group under the same steward leaders.

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  Cornett Meadow

  Location: 3445 Cornett Rd

  The Cornett Road Meadow was planted in 2025 as a living habitat for local pollinators and birds. A mix of Indigenous wildflowers, including goldenrod, self-heal, and yarrow, blooms here through summer and fall, offering food and shelter to the bees, butterflies, and songbirds that call this area home.

  The meadow sits beside the banks of Still Creek, where salmon still return to spawn. This is a remarkable reminder of the city's living watersheds. By restoring native plants along the creek's edge, this meadow helps support not just pollinators above ground but also the broader ecosystem that makes salmon habitat possible.

  This meadow was brought to life by Still Moon Arts Society in partnership with the City of Vancouver and Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation. 

  Photo credit: Still Moon Arts Society

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  Beaconsfield Berry Patch

  Location: 3215 Slocan St

  Following intensive removal of invasive plants, Hives for Humanity hosted Indigenous youth-led community events to plant a native plant berry patch in 2022.

  After centring Indigenous land stewardship and bee care in the DTES and East Vancouver for 13 years, Hives for Humanity closed in 2025 leaving this area available for community stewardship.

  Some of the berry plants did not survive the past year and are being replanted for the birds, bees, and the community to enjoy for years to come.

Locations available for a stewardship leader

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  Riverwalk Ave Rain Gardens

  

  Location: Riverwalk Ave Rain Gardens

  Riverwalk Avenue in southeast Vancouver features a series of rain gardens built between 2010 and 2024, with more to come.

  These rain gardens provide an opportunity in a rapidly densifying neighbourhood to get your hands in the ground while learning about sustainable rainwater management and low-impact development.

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  Gibby’s Field Wetland and Meadow

  

  Location: 1462 E 18th Ave

  Gibby’s Field Wetland and Meadow is a recently renovated naturalized space in the Kensington-Cedar Cottage neighbourhood. This parkette was designed as an ephemeral wetland, helping to hold rainwater runoff in the wet season while providing food and habitat to urban biodiversity year-round.

  You can find dozens of different native plants here, many of which were chosen specifically to support the pollinators and wildlife seen in this area.

  Keep an eye out as you’re walking by for sidewalk art that was designed and painted by Tyee students to reflect some of their favourite takeaways from the AIRS program that featured learning about the history of Gibby’s Field.

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  W 42nd Ave and Ontario St rain garden

  

  Location: W 42 Ave and Ontario St

  In 2021, 4 rain gardens on Ontario St between E 42 Ave and E 43 Ave were rehabilitated to:

  • Improve rainwater management performance
  • Support, and ultimately enhance water quality and climate resilience

  These gardens feature Indigenous plants and others that can withstand pollutants. They incorporate specialized soils to filter out pollutants from rainwater, while adding important habitat for pollinators.

  Located in a quaint residential neighbourhood and in front of a school, these rain gardens provide:

  • Neighbourhood beautification
  • Pollinator habitat
  • Educational outreach opportunities

  It has the potential to be a living classroom, with opportunities for the community members to connect with and learn about nature in the city.   

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  Sunset Park Rain Garden

  

  Location: E 51st Ave and Prince Edward St

  The rain garden at Sunset Park links the east and west sections of the park, creating a continuous green space. It enhances connections between park features, while adding habitats and improving biodiversity. 

  By using soil, plants, and trees, the rain garden filters pollutants from urban rainwater runoff. Features like interpretive signage and painted sidewalks and crosswalks highlight the connections between rainwater pollution and aquatic health downstream. 

  There is a unique seating area that create a warm, inviting space to gather, rest, and contemplate, while the adjacent park and garden space provides opportunities for community programing.

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  63rd and Yukon Rain Garden Plaza

  

  Location: W 63rd Ave and Yukon St

  Built in 2018, this site honours historical ecology, culture, and community.

  It features a landscape design that mimics the image of fallen trees in a typical British Columbia creek, as well as art installations created by Indigenous youth to reflect the caretakers and stewards of this land since time immemorial.  

  The plaza:

  • Increases access to green space
  • Enhances rainwater management
  • Improves neighborhood amenities

  In recent years, morning glory (an invasive species), has overtaken much of the natural vegetation, and requires routine pulls to help manage its spread. Morning glory is an aggressive vine which can choke out other plants, impacting the ecology and biodiversity of the site.

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  Other resources

  • Planting strategies PDF file (2.2 MB)
  • What is a rain garden PDF file (3.6 MB)
  • Stewardship planning template PDF file (124 KB)
  • Rain garden care tips PDF file (4 MB)