Pi in Nature (Not Just Math!)

March 14 is a day to celebrate a famous mathematical constant - pi (π).  Pi is the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter, known approximately as 3.14. 

While pi is commonly associated with math, it can also be seen in nature.

Pi appears as circles, such as water ripples, tree rings, and sunflower disks.

Pi appears in river bends.  The bendiness of a river, or sinuosity, is determined by its meandering ratio, which is the river's length along its winding path to the distance from the source to the oceans.  While rivers bend in all sorts of ways, the average ratio, according to a study, is approximately 3.14.

So in honour and awe of pi, on March 14, Pi Day, I will be celebrating with a piece of pie.

For more on pi in nature:

• Pi Day Pictures: Nature's Near-Perfect Circles
• The World is Full of Circles
• A person's take on pi:  A meandering tale: the truth about pi and rivers

Happy Pi Day!

Art Through Paper Folding

What do you get when you combine paper and butterflies together?  You get butterfly origami.

Origami is the art of paper folding.  I love origami.  My first introduction to origami, as may be the case with a lot of kids, was through folding a paper crane.  Who knew that you can transform a flat piece of paper, into a beautiful 3-dimensional object?

A few years ago, at an Origami Society of Toronto meeting, I learned how to fold a butterfly.  To learn how to fold more butterflies, they recommended the book Michael LaFosse's Origami Butterflies: Elegant Designs from a Master Folder.  Inspired by the butterfly that I just folded, I bought the book.  This instructional book is visually beautiful, and also comes with DVDs for audio-visual instructions.  I haven't yet learned how to fold every butterfly in the book, but it's a nice goal to work towards!

Happy folding!

Making a Difference Through Volunteer Vacations

Happy New Year!  The Green Bookmark returns after a hiatus.

The new year brings new beginnings, new reflections, new dreams, new goals, new aspirations, and new experiences.

For a global experience, consider a volunteer vacation.  Volunteer vacations combines travel and volunteering, and enables you to make a positive impact on the world.  Through volunteer vacations, you assist scientists with their research, and can take part in such research opportunities as studying the effects of climate change on the Arctic, or monitoring habitat loss in Costa Rica, or helping conserve wildlife along the Amazon Basin.

A resource that can help you get started is the book Volunteer Vacations: Short-Term Adventures That Will Benefit You and Others by Bill McMillon, Doug Cutchins, and Anne Geissinger.  It's a resource that lists organizations that are involved with volunteer vacations.  It provides information such as project type, geographic location of where the research takes place, length of placement, costs, and any skills that are required.

It's a very convenient guide and a great starting point.  Once you get an idea of what organizations matches your interests, follow-up with checking their websites for more details on projects that are available.

Volunteering is a rewarding experience.  Have a look at this book, and be inspired to make a difference in the world.

Hiking in Toronto

I used to think that hiking meant you had to drive hours out of the city to find trails in a forest somewhere.  However, you may find that nature is not too far away.

Many years ago, I came across the book Great Country Walks Around Toronto: Within Reach by Public Transit by Elliott Katz.  With this book, I learned about the numerous trails in parks and in open natural spaces, and those nestled and hidden in between residential areas and roads.

What I liked about this book is that it includes detailed maps and descriptions of the trails (knowing what kind of fork in the road or bridge to expect next), and how to get to the trails by public transit (what bus to take, where to get off) and car (what streets to take, where to park).  Its compact, pocket book size makes it easy to carry around too, which is a great advantage when you're already carrying around your personal items, a water bottle, and field guide books.

This resource opened up my eyes to the numerous trails within my own city of Toronto.  This book helped me discover nature within my own city, and that you can escape the city even when you're still in the city.

Eat Local with Farmers' Markets

Farmers' markets are abound in Canada.  Though some exist year-round, many of them are seasonal and start appearing in cities when springtime comes around.

There are many benefits to shopping at farmers' markets, including:

• when you buy local food, you support nearby farmers
• there is less distance traveled and resources used to ship the food from the farm to your plate, thereby minimizing the impact on the environment
• with less distance to travel, produce will be left to ripen in the field, be picked at its freshest, and will be the tastiest
• when you buy foods that are available, you get connected with the changing of the seasons

Check the Farmers' Markets Canada website to locate one near you:  http://www.farmersmarketscanada.ca

The Robert Bateman Centre

Robert Bateman is a Canadian-born, internationally-acclaimed wildlife artist, naturalist, and environmentalist.  His artwork is recognizable by his realistic painting style of nature and wildlife.

I found myself drawn to his works not only because I am interested in the natural world, but also because he is able to observe, understand, and capture the intricate details and diversity of nature in his paintings.  Whether it is a feather on a bird, snow on a tree branch, a ripple in a lake, or a vein in a leaf, this is what makes nature beautiful to me.

When the Robert Bateman Centre opened in Victoria, British Columbia last May, I had wanted to visit it.  The opportunity came exactly a year later when I travelled to Victoria this May, which coincided with 1 year anniversary of the opening of the Centre.

The Robert Bateman Centre is an art gallery that houses a substantial collection of his works, but it is also a centre that brings people closer to the natural world.  He promotes his love of nature and his call for environmental concern through his art, and his art enables us to reconnect with nature.

I encourage you to visit this collection if you have the chance to do so.

Visit the Robert Bateman Centre website for more information:  http://batemancentre.org

Wild about Green Gardening, with CWF’s Wild About Gardening

Spring and warm weather means that people will be out in their gardens.  Gardens serve many purposes.  Gardening can be a hobby, and people take great pride tending to their flowering plants and crops and watching them grow.  Gardens are aesthetic in nature, and can make one's home beautiful and inviting.  Gardens nourish the body, and can support a family and community with nutritious food.  Gardens bring comfort to the mind and soul, and can lift one’s spirits when being surrounded by green spaces.

In addition to these human benefits, gardens play an important role in supporting wildlife.  Gardens with native plants can attract pollinators, and gardens can be habitats for other animals.

However, gardening can take a lot of resources, but we can make less of an impact on the environment by practicing green gardening methods, such as saving water, composting, organic gardening, and companion planting.

The Canadian Wildlife Federation's Wild About Gardening website provides all this information.  In addition to information on various aspects of gardening, this website also includes a Native Plant Encyclopedia database, information on how to certify your garden as green, and where to find nurseries for native plants. 

Whether you're new to gardening and not sure where to begin, or whether you're a seasoned gardener and would like make your garden environmentally friendly, gardening is a great way to benefit everyone, as well as other living species on our planet.