Summer Program at Montréal Space for Life - See Life through the Eyes of a Child!

MONTRÉAL, June 20, 2016 /CNW Telbec/ - Montréal Space for Life invites you to experience nature through the eyes of a child throughout the summer. At the Botanical Garden, Heroes of the Forest will take you back to that magical world where playing could conjure up a thousand and one tales in our imaginations. It is a two-part adventure: the quest and the storytelling. Inspired by role-playing games, the quest will test your agility and set your senses and emotions tingling. Move, build, imagine and discover: you're the hero of this story! Then, on Fridays and Saturdays, settled in comfortably under the trees, you will meet the tellers of tall tales, talented raconteurs hand-picked by storyteller and artistic director Alain Lamontagne. Join them every week in the fabulous worlds they spin. Meanwhile, at the Insectarium, the facility's residents and their (ahem) private business take centre stage in the exhibition Oh, Poop!, while over at the Biodôme, Poop Tales delivers lots of fascinating anecdotes that will have everyone in your family giggling. And when it is just too hot to go outside, nothing can beat our Polar Experience for cooling off while enjoying a brand new augmented-reality adventure. This summer, everyone in the family will feel like a kid again at Montréal Space for Life!

"This year, Montréal Space for Life's program invites you to rediscover a child's sense of wonder at nature and its countless splendours," says Charles-Mathieu Brunelle, Montréal Space for Life's Executive Director." Come back to a time when your imagination could turn a pile of branches into a fort, and marvel with us at the grandeur of nature."

TD Friends of the Environment Foundation (TD FEF) is committed to protecting the environment and fostering the revitalization of green spaces in urban areas. That is why it was without hesitation that the Foundation offered its support to the Heroes of the Forest.

''In addition to their important cultural and recreational value and numerous health benefits, forests play a vital ecological role. Through its playful approach, Heroes of the Forest raises awareness among families of the many benefits of green spaces in urban areas, said Stephan Bourbonnais, Senior Vice-President and Region Head, Eastern Canada, TD Wealth and Chair of TD FEF in Quebec. For more than 25 years, TD FEF has been delighted to work closely with local communities to promote the growth and protection of our urban forests.''

• Heroes of the Forest at the Botanical Garden, June 20 to August 28
  In collaboration with TD Friends of the Environment Foundation
  Storytelling
  Fridays and Saturdays, at 3:30 p.m. in English
  Under the crab apple trees, storytellers weave amazing tales where the heroes and heroines are larger than life. The funny and touching tales of Selina Eisenberg Smith (June 24–25, July 1-2), John David Hickey (July 8–9, August 5–6, 12, 26–27), Stéphanie Bénéteau (July 15–16, 22–23 August, 19–20), Mike Burns (July 29–30) will whisk listeners off to a world where trees and nature are never far away.
  Fridays and Saturdays, at 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. in French
  Alain Lamontagne (June 24–25, August 20 and 27), Joujou Turenne (July 1–2), Jocelyn Bérubé (July 15–16), Michel Faubert (July 8–9 and August 26), Stéphanie Bénéteau (July 22–23), François Lavallée (July 29), Franck Sylvestre (July 30), Renée Robitaille (August 5–6), André Lemelin (August 12), Robert Seven-Crows (August 13) and Denis Massé (August 19).
• The Quest
  Self-guided activity available at all times. Guided activity: Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
  The story unfolds in the mythical county of Arbol, where you will set off on a captivating quest and face challenges like crossing wood logs, building cabins and towers, and solving mysteries. What hero or heroine will you become once you're done?
• Poop Tales at the Biodôme, June 18 to September 5
  Follow a surprising path through the heart of the Biodôme ecosystems … from dropping to dropping! Although they might make you giggle at first, droppings have many secrets to tell about the animals that produced them. Did you know that otters use "public bathrooms" to communicate with fellow otters?
• Oh, Poop! at the Insectarium, June 23 to September 5
  Amazing and informative, our vast collection of minuscule droppings will teach you more than you ever thought possible!
• Polar Experience at the Biodôme, June 18 to September 5, 2016, from 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
  An immersive augmented-reality experience like nothing you've ever seen before! Get close to our featured animals from the polar regions … really close! Penguins, polar bears and even a killer whale all await you.

Change is in the air at the Biodôme
This is the last summer you can visit the Biodôme as you know it. The Biodôme will be closing its doors to the public on September 6 as renovation work gets under way. You have until September 5 to visit the ecosystems one last time before the temporary closing.

Montréal Space for Life is made up of four attractions on the same site: the Biodôme, the Botanical Garden, the Insectarium and the Rio Tinto Alcan Planetarium. These four prestigious municipal institutions form Canada's largest natural science museum complex. Together, they are launching a daring, creative urban movement, urging everyone to rethink the connection between humankind and nature and cultivate a new way of living.

About TD Friends of the Environment Foundation
From schoolyard naturalization and energy conservation, to tree plantings and environmental education, TD Friends of the Environment Foundation (TD FEF) is proud to provide funding to help sustain an incredible array of grassroots environmental programs across the country.  In 2015, TD FEF supported over 1,000 projects with $4.6 million in funding. Thousands of donors give to TD FEF on a monthly basis, and TD Bank Group contributes $1 million annually. TD also covers the management costs of running TD FEF, which guarantees 100 per cent of every dollar donated funds environmental projects in the community in which the donation was made. For more information on how to donate and get involved in your community, visit tdfef.com.

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SOURCE Espace pour la vie

For further information: IXION Communications / Judith Dubeau, judith.dubeau@ixioncommunications.com, 514 495-8176