Events

Arrowview Elementary School will host the 3rd annual Brant Wildlife Children’s Festival in their gymnasium. Please join us for this public celebration of learning orchestrated by Arrowview Elementary students and teachers together with the Mount Arrowsmith Biosphere Region. The Brant Wildlife Children’s Festival underscores our community’s passion for collaboration and the environment featuring educational displays from over 25 different Vancouver Island groups together with students from preschool through high school. This event provides insight into our youth’s devotion for preserving nature while paralleling the community groups’ endeavours. Bridging the gap between classrooms and the community, fostering a collective sense of responsibility for the environment together.

The Brant Wildlife Festival Colouring Contest is brand new this year! Celebrate nature and wildlife by showcasing your creativity. This contest is a fun way to learn about the incredible Brant geese and the ecosystems they rely on—all while bringing beautiful artwork to life. How to Enter: Download a colouring page (coming soon!) – choose from a selection of wildlife-themed colouring sheets. Get Creative! Use crayons, markers, paints, or digital tools to add your artistic touch. Submit Your Artwork – Take a photo or scan your masterpiece and send it via email to ray.woroniak@viu.ca Who Can Enter? The contest is open to all ages! Contest Timeline: Submission Deadline: Thursday April 3, 2025 Winners Announced: Friday April 4, 2025 at the Brant Lift-off Gala Prizes:  Winning entries will receive a pizza party for their class or learning group! Judging Criteria: Creativity Connection to nature & wildlife Use of colour Join the fun and celebrate art, wildlife, and conservation! Whether you love Brant geese, shorebirds, forests, or oceans, let your imagination soar.

For the 2025 festival, we’re thrilled to bring back for the second year our Brant Wildlife Festival Passport! Designed to foster community engagement and support for local businesses across the Mount Arrowsmith Biosphere Region, this passport is your ticket to local treats and experiences during the Brant Wildlife Festival from April 1 to 14. Here’s how it works: Simply visit our participating businesses listed below and with each purchase, collect a sticker. Once you’ve gathered 6 stickers from these beloved local spots, you’ll be entered to win a prize! Passports can be easily picked up and dropped off at any of the participating businesses. Join us in supporting local businesses and celebrating the wonders of nature at the Brant Wildlife Festival! Enter to win… A gift certificate for a two-night stay in a beautiful Queen One-Bedroom Suite, at Pacific Shores Resort & Spa located in Nanoose. The certificate is valid until December 31, 2025 (with restrictions). Participating Businesses: You can receive stickers from any of the locations listed above, as well as pick-up and drop-off passports. Parksville: Brazen Poppy Bakery – Shelly Square, 402, 544 Island Hwy East, Parksville Coyote Coffee Roastery – 1499 Huntley Road #30, Parksville French Press […]

The Amazing Places Project is an initiative promoting accessible sites of spectacular natural beauty for visitors and locals to foster a connection within biosphere regions in Canada, while promoting responsible visitation practices. Originating in 2010 in the Fundy Biosphere Region in New Brunswick, the Amazing Places Project has expanded to five biosphere regions in three provinces. The Amazing Places in the Mount Arrowsmith Biosphere Region is the only of its kind in British Columbia and promotes ten sites that were nominated by the public as “Amazing Places”. These sites are: 1. Parksville Community Park 2. Milner Gardens and Woodland 3. Rathtrevor Beach Provincial Park 4. Notch Hill 5. Cameron Lake 6. MacMillan Provincial Park (Cathedral Grove) 7. Little Qualicum Falls Provincial Park 8. Heritage Forest 9. Englishman River Falls Provincial Park 10. Top Bridge Within the Mount Arrowsmith Biosphere Region’s Amazing Places is a Geocaching GeoTour, an outdoor “treasure hunt” which encourages users to find hidden caches by using GPS coordinates and clues. Inside the caches are a logbook and other items depending on the size of the cache. Geocachers can take and leave items; some are souvenirs from other players, and some are Trackables, Geocaching game pieces. Trackables are […]

Join Vancouver Island University’s Deep Bay Marine Field Station education team to learn about marine science and sustainable shellfish aquaculture at our unique, oceanside facility. Check out our aquaria, touch tanks, displays and activities, or get a tour of our laboratories. Some of our marine science and education partners will have information and activity booths too!

Join us for an easy walk along the mulch trails of the 50-acre Qualicum Beach Heritage Forest. Here’s an opportunity to learn about old-growth Douglas-fir trees, forest ecology, wildlife and cultural history of this rare gem. Experience what these coastal forests were like a century ago. This forest was purchased and saved from development through community fund raising led by the Brown Property Preservation Society (BPPS) during 1996-2004. Lands are now co-managed by the BPPS, Town of Qualicum Beach and The Land Conservancy of BC (TLC). Protected in perpetuity by a conservation covenant, ensuring that nature takes priority, with informative interpretive natural feature signage throughout.   To register, contact Tom at heritageforest@shaw.ca. Limit of 10 people per tour.   The tour is free of charge, so please just reserve space if you are going to attend, as space is limited to 10 people.

Explore the natural beauty of The Nature Trust of BC’s protected lands and learn about ongoing restoration efforts and future conservation plans. This guided tour, led by members of our experienced West Coast Conservation Land Management Program, offers a unique opportunity to explore the landscapes we’re working to protect first hand. Discover the vital role estuaries play in coastal ecosystems as we explore this important habitat. Learn about restoration projects aimed at supporting fish and wildlife populations, and hear about future conservation initiatives for this special place. Spaces are limited. Please reserve your space by completing our registration form available here.

This workshop will begin in the MABR Education Centre at 12pm. We will spend a short time reviewing your camera controls (shutter speed, f/stop, and ISO), settings for various spring conditions, and techniques to help you get fun and interesting images of shorebirds and other wildlife along the coast. We’ll depart the Education Centre and drive to Seaside Park where shorebirds will be foraging, flying, and potentially displaying mating behaviors. If there’s time and interest, we can walk 6 minutes up the road to Saahtlam Park to practice photographing in lower light conditions. All photography levels are welcome, but you should have a basic working knowledge of your camera. Equipment to bring: Camera – DSLR or Mirrorless, zoom lens (minimum reach 200mm is good), tripod (optional), an extra battery, an extra SD/Memory card, and your camera manual. Please dress accordingly as it may be very cold, windy, and/or rainy. Registration is required, maximum 12 participants. Information on how to register and workshop fees coming soon!

Explore the natural beauty of The Nature Trust of BC’s protected lands and learn about ongoing restoration efforts and future conservation plans. This guided tour, led by members of our experienced West Coast Conservation Land Management Program, offers a unique opportunity to explore the landscapes we’re working to protect first hand. Join us for a walk through this ecologically significant area and gain insight into the conservation efforts taking place. Learn about the native plant species, habitat restoration work, and plans to ensure long-term protection. Spaces are limited. Please reserve your space by completing our registration form available here.

Join the Arrowsmith Naturalists for a walk through forest and riparian areas of the storied Englishman River. On this Tour discover how this invaluable river estuary is being restored to its former glory though the dedication of The Nature Trust of BC, the ongoing stewardship work of volunteers such as the Arrowsmith Naturalists, the research of scientists, and the generosity of donors who are devoted to this multi-year recovery effort. Meet at the Shelly Rd Parking Area – 123A Shelly Road, Parksville, BC, V9P 1T7. Registration required, maximum 15 participants. 

Join us for an easy walk along the mulch trails of the 50-acre Qualicum Beach Heritage Forest. Here’s an opportunity to learn about old-growth Douglas-fir trees, forest ecology, wildlife and cultural history of this rare gem. Experience what these coastal forests were like a century ago. This forest was purchased and saved from development through community fund raising led by the Brown Property Preservation Society (BPPS) during 1996-2004. Lands are now co-managed by the BPPS, Town of Qualicum Beach and The Land Conservancy of BC (TLC). Protected in perpetuity by a conservation covenant, ensuring that nature takes priority, with informative interpretive natural feature signage throughout.   To register, contact Tom at heritageforest@shaw.ca. Limit of 10 people per tour.   The tour is free of charge, so please just reserve space if you are going to attend, as space is limited to 10 people.

Join us in raising a glass for nature! The evening will include a live band, presentations, appetizers, door prizes, and silent auction. The evening will be hosted at the Beach Club Resort in Parksville, with doors opening at 5pm.