Community Stewardship in Honor of #EEDay2020

MyHEAT’s 2nd Annual Tree Planting Event

The MyHEAT team has pledged to make local changes today that will have a global impact tomorrow, and even during a time of social distancing and working from home, we are still keeping that pledge. 

We’re passionate about cutting emissions and helping the world use energy more sustainably, so we look forward to celebrating that commitment each year during Energy Efficiency Day. This is a day when organizations and governments can reaffirm their commitment to responsible energy use and investment in renewables and clean tech. Since our team lives and breathes energy efficiency everyday, we like to celebrate this day a little differently.

Recently, the MyHEAT team left their home offices to gather along a section of urban creek in Calgary, our home city. We partnered with an ecologist and a team of science educators from the City of Calgary as part of the Skyline West Riparian Habitat Restoration project. Our small group planted 180 native shrubs including Shubby Cinquefoil, Golden Current, Green Alder, Saskatoon, Water Birch, Wolf Willow, Buffaloberry, Dogwood, and Bebb’s Willow. 

The project enhances biodiversity in the landscape along Nose Creek through the restoration of banks and riparian habitats. The goal is to turn these areas into self-sustaining plant communities that continue to mature in years to come. The City’s biodiversity target is to restore 20% of Calgary’s open space habitat by 2025.

The restored area acts as a primary corridor of green space through Calgary, providing habitat and connectivity for wildlife species to access the larger Bow River corridor. 

Habitat restoration has big impacts on the greater environment as well. While focus on renewables and energy efficiency is key to reducing emissions, we also need to remember the importance of carbon sequestration through biological processes. This includes restoring habitats in our forests, grasslands, and wetlands. Shrubs are a necessary part of this restoration process due to their adaptability to regenerate after weather or environmental disturbances. Their many stems and leaves efficiently pull carbon out of the air and share nutrients with the surrounding biome, making them big contributors to a healthy, bio-diverse soil system.

This was our second year participating in a planting event with the City and it’s something our team looks forward to every year. It serves as a great reminder that we are able to get out and make an impact on our community for a better future!

Written by:
Chelsea Froklage – Marketing & Design Lead at MyHEAT