Ontario Bioblitz

We're closing in on 2500 votes for our Aviva Community Fund project with The Toronto Zoo. But in order to make it into the top 10, we need everyone's help to at least DOUBLE this number and get our vote count up! We only have until this Thursday, Oct 4. Please help us by sharing this post and link and casting your votes for us! https://www.avivacommunityfund.org/voti/project/view/18-334 Why vote for our #bettertogether Big Idea?... We want to create a 2019 program year for the #bioblitz with more opportunities for all ages and experience levels to get up close with local biodiversity and help develop new #citizenscientists. Our world today is filled with distractions and forces working so hard to separate us from the things that matter. With the Ontario BioBlitz, we want to try and create those sparks that can make people recognize the amazing, wondrous biodiversity that is around us everyday, and to see how interconnected we are with each other, nature, and the planet. Part of that is learning how to look - how to notice the diversity around us, and learn why even the smallest insect and rarest wildflower or strangest fungi have value. #CitizenScience is about reclaiming natural history and science, and acknowledging that knowledge creation and sharing can and does exist beyond the walls of institutions. Natural history requires years of study and exploration and intense focus, and a curious, scientific mind. The world needs more citizen scientists, from the casual #inaturalist user who adds observations of species that intrigue them on a morning walk, to the dedicated professional biologist who can't help but explore nature and its wonders even on their vacation time - we are ALL scientists. We just have to know how to look, and how to see our connections with the planet. #natureforall

Thank you so much to the more than 1000 people who joined us for the 2018 Ontario BioBlitz events in the Durham Region! We'll be sharing some highlights of the season across our social media, so stay tuned for photos and stories. But first, today, we need your help to make #bioblitz2019 a reality! Please vote for the Ontario BioBlitz for the Aviva Community Fund #BetterTogether competition! You have 10 votes and can cast them all at once, during the 10-day voting period between Sept 25 and Oct 4. Please share this link and encourage everybody to cast their votes! https://www.avivacommunityfund.org/voti/project/view/18-334

Have you claimed your raffle prize yet? Check your tickets!

Our last bioblitz of the season is just days away, Sept 22 at the Claremont Nature Centre - have you signed up yet? https://www.ontariobioblitz.ca/ Registration closes tomorrow night! Come out and explore the autumn biodiversity, including lots of cool fungi, plants, migrating birds, and more, and help us add to our species count (1333 so far!)! Be sure to also visit our base camp nature festival - So much fun outdoors for the whole family! GIF by MapleStory M via GIPHY

Hey Ontario BioBlitzers! Registration for our final event of the 2018 season is NOW OPEN! We'll be at the Claremont Nature Centre Sept. 22-23 surveying the biodiversity of the Duffins Creek Watershed. Visit our website [https://www.ontariobioblitz.ca/] and answer a quick quiz question to start the registration process. The event is FREE with family-friendly programming on Saturday! Questions? Feel free to reply to this post!