This tour starts at the Philips Hager and North Rooftop Garden on the 9th floor of Vancouver Public Library (VPL) Central Branch. This 8,000-square-foot, accessible oasis was designed by world-renowned Vancouver landscape architect, Cornelia Hahn Oberlander. Meet here at 5pm.
Once divided into groups, we’ll visit TELUS Garden, which features extensive greenery, including a rooftop forest and an urban farm. MicroHabitat’s urban farming experts, who tend this farm on a weekly basis, will show us how they grow up to 45 varieties of vegetables and herbs here. This building highlights climate resilience, food security, and smart urban design. RSVP essential due to limited capacity.
🗓️ Date: Tues. July 28
⏱️ Time: 5:00 – 6:30
📍 Meet: VPL Central Branch, 9th floor Rooftop Garden
June 6 is World Green Roof Day, our favourite day of the year! Since it falls on a Saturday, this year’s green roof tour is on Tues May 26. This means participants who engage in social media will be able to prepare original content (pictures, videos) and represent Vancouver in #WGRD2026.
Multi-award winning Marine Gateway was completed in 2015 as a global showcase of transit oriented development, and the green roofs are the cherry on top. We’re stoked to collaborate with Reece Rehm, from City of Vancouver’s Green Rainwater Infrastructure Team, who supervised the installation. This exclusive tour delivers stunning views of Vancouver and the Fraser River. RSVP essential.
🔹 Use the button below to reserve your spot!
Our first green roof tour of the year explores a project installed nearly 20 years ago. This lush rooftop ecosystem was planted with perennial species indigenous to the Pacific Northwest, and it still looks great! This year, we’re delighted to be accompanied by the original designer, ethnobotanist and nature-based educator, Zarah Martz.
🔹 Space is limited—use the button below to reserve your spot now!
Regrets: This green roof is not mobility inclusive; access is by 4 flights of stairs. However, our post-tour GRIN social will take place on the roof garden of the Coal Harbour community centre. The GRIN social is open to all!
Our first tour of the year explores the St. George’s Rainway, which has a long-term aspiration to transform St. George Street (between 5th Ave and Kingsway) into a park-like, functional “blue-green” corridor. As a series of rain gardens and bioswales, the project manages stormwater, reduces flooding, increases urban biodiversity, and enhances active transportation. The project aims to reconnect the community with nature and commemorate a historic buried stream.
We’ll be joined by Bryn Davidson, who conceived the project 20 years ago while exploring the possibility of linear corridors and watershed revival in the area. We’re also pleased to be joined by Julie McManus from the City of Vancouver (Green Infrastructure Implementation Team).
Join us for a unique tour of the beautiful rainwater ponds at Jericho Beach in Vancouver! Explore how this stunning green infrastructure manages stormwater and supports local wildlife — and if we’re lucky, we might even catch a glimpse of the resident beavers in action!
Don’t miss this chance to experience nature, water, and wildlife in the heart of the city!
Explore the best of North Vancouver’s green infrastructure on this engaging walking tour! We’ll start at the Loblaws City Market green roof (Lonsdale & 17th Ave.), then stroll north along Lonsdale, stopping to explore rain gardens, street trees, and other stormwater features.
We’re proud to partner with the North Shore Streamkeepers, who will share their experience creating the new rain garden at North Shore Alliance Church. City of North Vancouver staff will also join us to offer local insights.
RSVP required. We can’t wait to see you there!
Estimated walking distance: 1.1km
This tour visits a spectrum of rain gardens on a 1.8 km walking tour 🌧🌱 We begin at Gibby’s Field, a new park featuring an ephemeral wetland, then walk along the Mosaic bike path to examine various rain gardens around Clark Park and Woodland Ave. The walk concludes at the Woodland and 2nd Ave installation, and wraps with a picnic across the street, in Alice Townley Park.
We’re pleased to be accompanied by staff from the City of Vancouver’s Green Infrastructure Team, who have built and retrofitted all the projects we will visit. Join us to learn everything you ever wanted to know about rain gardens!
🔹 Reserve your spot now (RSVP below)!
Sections of the walk feature uneven ground and may be challenging for those with mobility issues. Our post-tour GRIN social will take place at Alice Townley Park, and is open to all.
ur July tour celebrates the integration of pollinator habitat within water sensitive landscapes and the built environment 🌸🐝🌸. This 1.8 km walking tour visits a range of pollinator habitats in Kitsilano, including:
We’re pleased to welcome staff from City of Vancouver’s Green Infrastructure Team along, to hear from them about the ambitious daylighting of Tatlow Creek. We’re delighted for the opportunity to visit the home of award-winning landscape architect, Randy Sharp, to savour his flavour of ecological design. And we’re stoked to have members from the Native Bee Society of BC along, who will open our eyes – and minds – on how to to see native bees and what we can do to better support them.
🔹 Snag your spot to this educational gem 🔹
GRIN is thrilled to invite you on a special behind-the-scenes tour of one of Vancouver’s pioneering Green Roofs on April 15th! 🌿🌇 This is a rare opportunity to explore a lush rooftop ecosystem planted with perennial species indigenous to the Pacific Northwest. We look forward to visiting a mature green roof that was ahead of its time, planted nearly 20 years ago. Don’t miss this chance to experience urban ecology in action!
🔹 Space is limited—reserve your spot now! Click on the button to snag your spot!!
Regrets: This green roof is not mobility inclusive; access is by 4 flights of stairs. However, our post-tour GRIN social will take place on the roof garden of the Coal Harbour community centre or a nearby park. The GRIN social is open to all; let us know if you can join us.
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