About Us

The Giant’s Rib Escarpment Education Network (GREEN) is a not-for-profit charitable organization dedicated to providing public education about the Niagara Escarpment World Biosphere Reserve.

The name “Giant’s Rib” is another name for the Escarpment, known in the time of Canada’s early settlers. It was believed that the rock was the fossilized remains of a giant’s rib. The Giant’s Rib Discovery Centre (GRDC) was the name assigned to an interpretive centre which was to be built in Hamilton as the “Urban Gateway to the Niagara Escarpment”. (see History)

Currently our network of public education programs includes:

  • The operation of a small discovery centre in the Dundas Valley Conservation Area with displays, crafts, information and more,
  • An Arts and Photography Series which features an artist or photographer each month and their escarpment-related works,
  • A monthly lecture series featuring prominent escarpment speakers and topics,
  • Free guided interpretive hikes at three locations in Hamilton and Halton,
  • A curriculum-based Rocks and Minerals unit offered free of charge to teachers,
  • An educational video overview of the Niagara Escarpment,
  • This website (under development),
  • Outreach at Escarpment-related events.

Richard Murzin, President of the Canadian Biosphere Reserves Association (CBRA), declared in 2007 that the Giant’s Rib Discovery Centre (GRDC) had been recognized by the CBRA as a local biosphere committee for the Niagara Escarpment Biosphere Reserve.

GREEN is managed and operated by a group of volunteers of all ages. While we are always looking for the opportunity to establish a world-class “Discovery” centre, our efforts are currently focused on developing this website into a one-stop educational resource on the Niagara Escarpment World Biosphere Reserve, renovating and improving displays at the current centre, and establishing a network of smaller centres or information kiosks all along the Niagara Escarpment.

This website and the first steps in this expansion and improvement project have received funding from individual donors and generous funding from the following organizations:

Friends of the Greenbelt Foundationgreenbelt_Logo_4C_OL

The Friends of the Greenbelt have shown a great deal of support for our expansion efforts and our desire to accompany Greenbelt education alongside Niagara Escarpment education since the two are intrinsically linked. We would like to thank the Friends of the Greenbelt Foundation not only for their financial support but for their support in principle of our efforts.

On February 28, 2005, the Ontario Government established a provincial greenbelt, adding one million acres of farmland and environmentally sensitive areas to the already protected Niagara Escarpment and Oak Ridges Moraine. Now a world-class model for preservation, Ontario’s Greenbelt is the largest of its kind, spanning more than 1.8 million acres of protected forest, farmlands, and wetlands, and continues to grow. The Friends of the Greenbelt Foundation is a non-profit grant-making organization working to help keep farmers successful, strengthen local economies, and protect and grow natural features. For more information or to donate, visit www.greenbelt.ca

Greenbeltfresh.ca

Greenbeltfresh.ca is funded by and managed by the Friends of the Greenbelt Foundation, and is an exciting example of the Foundation’s efforts to support and enhance the agricultural sector by increasing connections between consumers and Greenbelt farmers. Here you can find all sorts of information about local produce grown throughout the greenbelt, local farms, local foods and initiatives.

TD Friends of the Environment Foundation

Landor Print DefaultTD FEF has been a supporter of the GRDC , funding our Teacher’s Kits, volunteer training, improvement projects and more. We are grateful for their assistance and support of our efforts to promote and preserve Ontario’s Niagara Escarpment World Biosphere Reserve. Since 1990, TD FEF has provided more than $65 million in funding to more than 22,000 environmental projects across Canada. In 2013, TD FEF provided more than $4.4 million in support of over 900 projects. Thousands of donors give to TD FEF on a monthly basis and TD Bank Group contributes in excess of $1 million annually. TD also covers the management costs of running TD FEF, which guarantees 100 per cent of every dollar donated, goes directly to funding environmental projects and programs. For more information on how to donate, visit www.tdfef.com.

Ontario Trillium FoundationOTFVERTcolour

The Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF) is an agency of the Government of Ontario, and Canada’s largest granting foundation. Over $110 million is awarded annually to some 1,300 nonprofit and charitable organizations across the province. For more information, visit www.otf.ca.

 

Allegra Footprint Fund

footprint fund The FootPRINT Fund® helps eligible nonprofit organizations enhance their image, expand their services and extend their printing budgets utilizing Allegra’s marketing and print services. Allegra has helped us move forward in expanding our reach by providing print materials we would otherwise not be able to afford. New brochures have helped us gain a wider audience and promote new guided hiking programs to families in the area. We are grateful to Allegra for their contributions and look forward to working closely with them as we move forward with expansion and re-branding as the Giant’s Rib Escarpment Education Network!

Hamilton Conservation Authority

HCA Logo colourThe Giant’s Rib Discovery Centre could not have become a reality nor remained open without the efforts of so many volunteers and the support of the Hamilton Conservation Authority (HCA).  As a founding entity, they are responsible for the existence of this organization and have supported the GRDC with in-kind contributions and weekly staff support and cooperation. Thanks go to HCA for all they have done.

50 Year Vision LogoDundas Valley 50 Year Vision and Strategy

GREEN is a partner in the Dundas Valley 50 Year Vision and Strategy project. For more information on this initiative, please click here.

ClimateChampionsWebIcon_SignatoriesClimate Change Champions

GREEN is a signatory on the Hamilton Climate Change Charter. For information on how you can sign the charter and become a Climate Change Champion like us, click here.