Community Profile

Pledge Status

Complete

Pledge Date

Wednesday, December 16, 2020

Program Year

2021

Achievement

Signatories

2021

Links and Uploads

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Action Item Report

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Town of Whitby

Whitby, ON

Don Mitchell

Mayor

Pledge Summary

Established in 1855, the Town of Whitby is situated on the north shore of Lake Ontario, 30 km east of Toronto. The Town maintains 125 parks with 950 acres of active parkland, over 1000 acres of passive open space, and approximately 75 kilometres of trails. The estimated population is 138,300 and Durham Region predicts the population of Whitby will be approximately 200,000 by 2033. The Town of Whitby’s mission to create and maintain a sustainable, healthy, and safe community/environment can be achieved, in part, through the maintenance, restoration, and enhancement of the Town’s green infrastructure. A healthy habitat for pollinators is an integral component of the municipality.

Community Spotlight

Action Items Committed for 2021

Communications and Convening

  • Launch or maintain a public communication effort to encourage residents to plant monarch gardens at their homes or in their neighborhoods. (If you have community members who speak a language other than English, we encourage you to also communicate in that language; Champion Pledges must communicate in that language.)
  • Issue a proclamation to raise awareness about the decline of the monarch butterfly and the species’ need for habitat. This proclamation must incorporate a focus on monarch conservation.

Program and Demonstration Gardens

  • Launch, expand, or continue an invasive species removal program that will support the re-establishment of native habitat for monarch butterflies and other pollinators.
  • Display educational signage at monarch gardens and pollinator habitat.

Systems Change

  • Increase the percentage of native plants, shrubs and trees that must be used in city landscaping ordinances and encourage use of milkweed, where appropriate.