From our Experts

Readers and visitors undoubtedly associate our Conservation team with awareness raising about Mount Royal’s ecosystems and forest regeneration through trail closures and tree planting. However, behind the scenes, the team is conducting important research projects to better understand and measure the mountain’s ecological integrity. Les Amis’ Head of Conservation Services, Antonin St-Jean, tells us more.

Photo : Pascale Bélanger Lavallée

On April 4th, Les Amis de la montagne unveiled its Plan de conservation du réseau écologique du mont Royal 2023-2027 [plan for the conservation of Mount Royal’s ecological network 2023—2027, in French only]. which is the result of an extensive scientific analysis conducted with the Coalition des Montérégiennes.

 

Photo : Sébastien Foray

The Great Mount Royal Clean-Up will look different in 2023. This year, the traditional garbage collection activities will be integrated with those of the Environmental Stewardship Program (ESP), which will start in early May. This will enable us to minimize our impact on the mountain’s natural environment, involve more volunteers of all ages and, as always, celebrate this jewel that holds a privileged place in the heart of our city and our lives.

With its unique, 423-hectare ecological network and rich biodiversity, Mount Royal is central to the lives of Montrealers and virtually serves as an open-air school. Easily accessible to hundreds of thousands of people, the mountain’s natural environment is perfect for exploration and learning. Emily Coffey, Head of Education Services and designer of several programs for Les Amis de la montagne, as well as a number of projects supported by the Ministère de l’Éducation [Quebec’s department of education], talks about the organization’s essential role in environmental education and in preparing the next generation of environmentally responsible citizens.

What do Mount Royal’s fauna and flora do to survive the cold and snow? Ariane Bernier, Environmental Conservation Patrol Lead at Les Amis de la montagne, gives us a few examples of the strategies our mountain’s plants and wildlife use to make sure they can get through the winter.

Les Amis de la montagne is one of the 94 organizations that make up the Collectif COP15, whose mission is to encourage governments to take ambitious, concrete action in terms of nature conservation. For over 35 years, Les Amis and its partners have been working together to maintain the integrity of Mount Royal’s natural ecosystems by improving the condition of the mountain’s ecological network, raising awareness among its visitors and users, and developing a collective commitment to protecting the mountain, which is a major nucleus of biodiversity in Montreal.

Feature article by Marie-Odile Trépanier, Honorary Professor of Urban Planning at Université de Montréal and member of Les Amis de la montagne’s Board of Directors, and Jean-François Roy, Urban Planning, Environment and Heritage Advisor for Les Amis de la montagne.

Spearheaded by Les Amis de la montagne with the support of the City of Montréal and Québec’s Ministère de la Culture et des Communications, the Paroles de Paysages project enables visitors to explore the mountain’s natural and cultural heritage from the standpoint of three of its most iconic sites: the Mount Royal Chalet and Kondiaronk Belvedere, the Beaver Lake Pavilion and Tiohtià:ke Otsira’kéhne Park on the Outremont Summit.

The main objective is to offer the public the chance to learn about diverse and important aspects of Mount Royal through a variety of themes such as the mountain’s biodiversity, landscape, architecture, history, Indigenous presence and conservation.

 

The monarch is one of the best-known butterfly species in the world, as well as one of the largest in Canada. Sadly, the monarch was entered on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species™ as Endangered on July 21, 2022.

Is there still hope for this magnificent migrator? Perhaps, explains Jérôme Bernier-Brillon, head of the Environmental Stewardship Program at Les Amis de la montagne, but only if we all do everything we can to prevent it from disappearing forever. How? By taking part in the international program called Mission Monarch, for starters.

 

If you’ve been taking “wellness” walks on Mount Royal, especially since the beginning of the pandemic, you’ve probably noticed litter in the park and you might want to lend a hand and pick it up. As noble and appreciated a gesture as that is, conducting a clean-up on your own isn’t a good idea for a number of reasons. Antonin St-Jean, Head of Conservation Services at Les Amis de la montagne, tells us why.