WINNIPEG, Sept. 13, 2016 /CNW/ - The Assiniboine Park Conservancy was honoured to host Indigenous and other community leaders today including Elders and Treaty One specialists, as participants gathered to create a vision for the planned Indigenous Peoples' Garden at Assiniboine Park – a critical element of the larger $70 million dollar Canada's Diversity Gardens initiative.
The Visioning Workshop is an all-day gathering organized by representatives from Ayshkum Engineering in partnership with HTFC Planning & Design and the Assiniboine Park Conservancy (APC). The day will begin with a welcome and drum song, followed by a field visit, sharing circle, various presentations and a visioning walk.
"This is a very exciting opportunity to take ownership of what the Indigenous Peoples' Gardens will be both now and well into the future," said Cheyenne Thomas with Ayshkum Engineering, and one of the primary organizers of the day. "We see this as another critical step in reconciliation and an opportunity to revitalize indigenous values."
The future Indigenous Peoples' Garden is one of the four cornerstone elements of the planned Canada's Diversity Gardens, a socially innovative project designed to celebrate the connections between all people, all cultures and the natural world. Other elements include the Cultural Mosaic Gardens, The Grove arboretum, and the project centrepiece – a new indoor horticultural masterpiece called The Leaf.
"Canada's Diversity Gardens is so much more than just beautiful horticulture," said Margaret Redmond, APC's President and CEO. "This project will be a source of national pride as we find new and meaningful ways to connect with nature and each other."
Canada's Diversity Gardens is the third phase of Assiniboine Park's $200 million redevelopment plan; with phase one including the creation of the Nature Playground, the expansion of the Riley Family Duck Pond, and the building of the new Qualico Family Centre. Phase two consisted of a dramatic transformation of the Assiniboine Park Zoo, including the creation of Journey to Churchill, North America's premier northern species exhibit.
SOURCE Assiniboine Park
Image with caption: "Future site plan of Canada's Diversity Gardens at Assiniboine Park located in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Canada's Diversity Gardens will be a new iconic horticultural attraction celebrating our worlds cultural and biodiversity. Throughout the four cornerstones - The Leaf, the Indigenous Peoples' Garden, the Cultural Mosaic Gardens and The Grove - an exploration of the human connection with plants and nature will showcase our nation's extraordinary multicultural heritage. (CNW Group/Assiniboine Park)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20160913_C4128_PHOTO_EN_771373.jpg
For interviews and information requests, please contact: Laura Curtis, APC Manager, Marketing & Communications, Office: 204-927-6057, Cell: 204-793-4316, [email protected]
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