Phase one of construction has begun on our Humber Pond Revitalization Project!

Taking place in the Humber Arboretum’s ravine just west of Highway 27 along the West Humber Trail, this innovative project will:

• Create new learning and social gathering spaces for our students and community
• Help protect the health of people, native plants, and wildlife
• Pioneer innovative, sustainable approaches to green infrastructure

For decades, the Humber Pond has played a key role in protecting the health of the West Humber River. Excess runoff water from North Campus is channeled into the pond, where some of the sediment has a place to settle before clearer, calmer water moves into the river. In the many years since the pond was built however, knowledge about supporting sustainable water systems has improved while the pond’s water quality has degraded.

As a response, the Humber Arboretum and its three founding partners, Humber College, Toronto and Region Conservation (TRCA), and the City of Toronto came together to turn a sustainability challenge into a solution. Our plan is to clean up the water quality and restore native plants and wildlife habitat while simultaneously re-imagining the space as an outdoor classroom, living laboratory, and social gathering space.

The construction now underway will replace the metal inlet culvert pipe with open-air pools that act like a staircase, leading water slowly down to the pond. When water reaches the pond, a forebay will help stop more of the sediment, while treatment berms will catch the water again before it heads out to the river. All around the pond shoreline we will create spaces for the native plant species that naturally clean the water, while new native meadow and tree and shrub plantings will create a variety of wildlife habitat on the surrounding land.

Future construction efforts will see the addition of a new wetland along with recreational lookouts and a new outdoor classroom. This extensive effort will benefit local ecosystems and human communities alike, and represents the power of partners working together to realize a vision. We hope you’ll join in our excitement to see this project come to life!

Learn more on the Humber Arboretum and Centre for Urban Ecology’s website.

Alexandra (Alix) Link
Director, Humber Arboretum and Centre for Urban Ecology

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Please note that the following locations will be under repair starting the first two weeks of May, with some projects continuing until mid-August:

• Arboretum Blvd. from the Commuter Hub/parking garage around to the green sprung building (Building P)
• Patio and sidewalk area outside 10 Carrier Drive 
• General asphalt and paving repairs throughout campus parking areas
• Interlock behind the Eco-Center within the Arboretum

We will work to ensure that these projects will be coordinated so to minimize delays and interruptions.

Thank you,
Humber Facilities Team

Once again, we are proud to honour Humber’s distinguished alumni at the upcoming Premier’s Awards taking place December 2, 2019. The Alumni Office is currently searching for amazing alumni to nominate, and we hope you can help!

The Premier’s Awards Gala is an annual event held by Colleges Ontario that celebrates the achievements of Ontario college graduates. On this night, seven individuals from colleges across the province are awarded in honour of the significant social and economic contributions they have made throughout their careers.

Each Ontario college is able to nominate one graduate for each of the following categories:

• Business
• Community Services
• Creative Arts and Design
• Health Sciences
• Recent Graduate (2014-present)
• Technology
• Apprenticeship

We take pride in our alumni and would like to recognize those who have compelling success stories. We are searching for candidates who have:

• Made a significant impact in their chosen career
• Made a significant contribution to their sector
• Been recognized by others in their industry and/or profession
• Helped shape or change the lives of others
• Made a significant contribution to their community

We appreciate your support in our search and hope that you will share this information with your networks. We would love to see Humber back at the podium this year! If you know of any phenomenal graduates, please contact alumni@humber.ca.

To learn more about past nominees and winners, click here. 

The Department of Continuing Education in the School of Liberal Arts and Sciences is excited to be offering a new ASL Workshop-Communicating with the Deaf: Working with Young Children.

This five-hour workshop will introduce participants on how to use American Sign Language (ASL) in educational settings with young children (i.e. early childhood learning centres, kindergarten and preschool classes, etc.). Participants will learn strategies and techniques to use with deaf and hard of hearing children. They will also develop skills for interacting with deaf parents and family members. The ASL alphabet, numbers, basic sign language words, phrases and sentences to use when communicating with deaf children will be taught in the workshop. These skills will assist in breaking down barriers and encourage interactions between deaf, hard of hearing and hearing children.

The first workshop is on Saturday, April 27 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the North Campus. The summer workshops are June 22 and August 24. These workshops are being offered at both campuses.

For more information and to register please click here.