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7 | O akville B eaver | T hursday,M arch 17,2022 insidehalton.com TRUSTED for over YEARS My name is Talia Choudhary. I am a Grade 11 student at Abbey Park High School. Currently, I'm working as a co-operative education student at the Halton Envi- ronmental Network (HEN), a non-profit organi- zation that strives to make Halton a region with edu- cated citizens, engaged stakeholders promoting best policies for climate change mitigation and ad- aptation and environmen- tal sustainability. As a high school stu- dent, I am looking forward to developing skills and gaining experience in this placement. In addition, I'm excited for the chance to help my community and educate others on climate change and sustainability. I am thrilled to be work- ing at HEN. Recently, I had a chance to take part in Halton Gar- den Week, a four-day sum- mit composed of talks, ac- tivities and workshops that are focused on gardening and sustainability in Hal- ton. It is a great opportunity for people to come together and celebrate gardening across Halton, with public events including speakers, workshops and a movie night, all facilitating a fo- cus on sustainable, local practices and products. I had the incredible op- portunity to sit in on two webinars highlighting the importance of native plants and Indigenous me- dicinal plants in our gar- dens and community. Creation Care: Garden- ing for the Birds and the Bees, hosted by Donna Lang, focused on the dan- gers of invasive species in the community of Oakville. It highlighted phragmites, also known as phragmites australis, as one of Halton's fastest spreading invasive plants. Phragmites are ca- pable of completely taking over and destroying vast spaces. An effective way to make sure that you have a healthy garden space is to plant native pollinator plants. The benefits of native species are endless: some being that they provide nectar for pollinators, in- cluding hummingbirds, bees and butterflies and once established, native plants barely need any irri- gation beyond the normal rainfall. The pollinators allow the plants to reproduce, and the nuts, seeds, and fruits then produced by these plants offer essential foods for many forms of wildlife, creating a cyclic process perpetuating new life. Native plants not only bring pollinators to our gardens, but many of them have wonderful medicinal properties, and have been used by First Nations peo- ples for thousands of years. Traditional Indigenous Uses for Plants and Herbs with Gail Whitlow was a very informative webinar on how to use certain plants in everyday life. There are many plants that grow all around Halton that can be used for various purposes, including mater- nal and child health care, common illnesses, injury, infections and mental health. I learned about many plants I have seen growing in my community, such as those in the genus veroni- ca, which can be used to re- lieve skin irritation or in allium, which can enhance the immune system. Being deeply passionate about the environment, it was great to learn some en- vironmental knowledge that I can apply in my life and share with others. There is so much to be learned about sustainabili- ty, and I am thankful I was able to take part in this amazing event to deepen my knowledge. Overall, I found that Halton Garden Week was a very positive experience, and it provided me with many valuable opportuni- ties to learn about the im- portance of our native flo- ra. From pollinator plants to Indigenous medicinal plants, I have learned so many new uses for the plants native to my com- munity. I'm excited to apply this newfound knowledge in my life, and I am looking forward to learning even more about sustainability and mitigation as I contin- ue my work with the Hal- ton Environmental Net- work. Talia Choudhary is a Grade 11 student at Abbey Park High School and a current intern with the Halton Environmental Network. EYE-OPENING EXPERIENCE ON ENVIRONMENT OPINION HALTON ENVIRONMENTAL NETWORK INTERNSHIP PROMISES TO BE INVALUABLE, WRITES TALIA CHOUDHARY TALIA CHOUDHARY Column