Every few years, Saskatoon faces a choice. Not a dramatic choice like a referendum or an election, but one that is every bit as consequential: the renewal of the City’s Strategic Plan. These four-year roadmaps may sound like bureaucratic exercises, but in reality, they determine the direction of our city—how tax dollars are spent, what priorities rise to the top, and what kind of community we are building together.
The draft 2026–2029 Strategic Plan is now open for public input. The City is asking for your voice, your perspective, your values. This is an invitation not just to review a document, but to help define the kind of Saskatoon you want to live in—and leave behind.
Why Participate?
Consider this: every time we debate road repairs versus transit investment, playgrounds versus parking – accessible playgrounds versus parking lots, climate adaptation versus short-term fixes, those decisions trace back to the Strategic Plan. It is the compass for our city, the place where vision meets budget, and where our aspirations are either nurtured or neglected.
Do we want Saskatoon to be a city that values its natural areas, that treats climate action as a necessity rather than a luxury, that balances growth with stewardship of land and water? These are the questions the Strategic Plan asks—though it will only answer them well if citizens speak up.
You have until September 19, 2025 to review the draft and complete the survey. It’s your chance to guide where Saskatoon’s resources and energies will go for the next four years.
[Click here to complete the survey]
Another Crucial Choice: Weed Management in Our Green Spaces
At the same time, the City is asking for input on a Weed Management Pilot Project. This may sound like a small matter—but it is anything but. How we manage weeds in our parks and sports fields is, in fact, a litmus test for how we manage our shared environment.
Saskatoon’s green spaces are the lungs of our city. They are where children play, where pollinators forage, where families gather, where the prairie still breathes in the midst of concrete and asphalt. Yet weeds—many of them invasive species—are spreading quickly, especially in newer neighbourhoods. Climate change only accelerates this challenge.
Did you know that climate change makes noxious invasive plants harder to control in five key ways?
- Longer growing seasons give invasive weeds more time to spread and establish.
- Milder winters allow more invasive plants to survive year-round.
- Increased drought stress weakens native species, giving weeds a competitive edge.
- More intense rainfall events spread invasive seeds and disturb soils where they take root.
- Elevated carbon dioxide levels can actually enhance the growth rates of certain invasive plants.
These are not trivial issues. They determine whether our green spaces support native grasses and wildflowers—or become overrun by thistle and brome. They shape whether our pollinator populations thrive or decline. And they influence whether our children play in safe, welcoming parks—or in spaces dominated by neglect.
The Weed Management survey asks you to weigh in on approaches and issues related to herbicide application. Do you know anything about organics, soil improvement and naturalized xeriscaped plantings. Perhaps you have a pollinator paradise in your front yard, and you have researched herbicides.
Your input will help decide weed management choices being taken by the city for our greenspaces and sports fields.
You have until September 3, 2025 to complete this survey.
[Click here to complete the survey]
The Bigger Picture
When we speak about weeds or strategic plans, what we’re really speaking about is the kind of city we want to build. Do we want a Saskatoon that is reactive, piecemeal, and short-sighted—or one that is deliberate, inclusive, and rooted in respect for our environment?
These surveys are more than checkboxes on a website. They are opportunities to align our civic choices with our highest values: care for the earth, justice for one another, stewardship for future generations.
As Friends of the Saskatoon Afforestation Areas, we encourage you to take these surveys seriously. They are your voice, your influence, your role in shaping a sustainable Saskatoon.
The future doesn’t just happen. We choose it—together.
💡 And here’s a bonus! Complete the Climate Action Plan survey for a chance to win a $50 retail gift card. Survey closing August 29 – don’t miss out on your chance to provide input on the City’s climate action plan.
How is climate change affecting our community? What actions should the City prioritize?
Take the survey by August 29 → https://brnw.ch/21wVd5W
Bonus: A National Urban Park for Saskatoon?
Beyond these City initiatives, there’s another exciting opportunity to dream big. Meewasin, together with Parks Canada, is exploring the creation of a National Urban Park in the heart of the Prairies. This park could conserve vital prairie ecosystems, provide dedicated spaces for reconciliation and cultural sharing, expand trails and programs, and protect trees and forests! Did you know that the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area is in the zone?
👉 Take the survey by September 12 to help shape this once-in-a-generation project. Let’s imagine tomorrow’s park together!
✨ Your voice matters. Completing these surveys is quick, but the impact lasts for years. Together, we can build a Saskatoon that works for everyone—thriving, green, inclusive, and ready for the future.
Why Your Voice Matters
It’s easy to take surveys for granted, but each completed response is a powerful signal. Collectively, our feedback ensures that decisions are not made behind closed doors but reflect the values of the people who live here.
At Friends of the Saskatoon Afforestation Areas, we believe citizen participation is a cornerstone of sustainability. These surveys give us a voice in shaping a city that honours its natural heritage, responds to climate change, and builds an inclusive, equitable future for all.
This is our Saskatoon. Let’s shape it together.
Strong Communities, Healthy Ecosystems: Add Your Voice to Four Important City Plans
Addresses:
Part SE 23-36-6 – Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area – 241 Township Road 362-A
Part SE 23-36-6 – SW Off-Leash Recreation Area (Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area ) – 355 Township Road 362-A
S ½ 22-36-6 Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area (West of SW OLRA) – 467 Township Road 362-A
NE 21-36-6 “George Genereux” Afforestation Area – 133 Range Road 3063
Wikimapia Map: type in Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area
Google Maps South West Off Leash area location pin at parking lot
Web page: https://stbarbebaker.wordpress.com
Where is the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area? with map
Where is the George Genereux Urban Regional Park (Afforestation Area)?with map
Blogger: FriendsAfforestation
Tumblr friendsafforestation.tumblr.comFacebook Group Page: Users of the George Genereux Urban Regional Park
Facebook: StBarbeBaker Afforestation Area
Facebook for the non profit Charity Friends of the Saskatoon Afforestation Areas Inc. FriendsAreas
Facebook group page : Users of the St Barbe Baker Afforestation Area
Support via Zeffy
Please help protect / enhance your afforestation areas, please contact the Friends of the Saskatoon Afforestation Areas Inc. (e-mail / e-transfers )
Donate your old vehicle, here’s how!
Support using Canada Helps
Support via a recycling bottle donation and Join the plastic-recycle challenge!
United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration
- Use the UN Decade’s Visual Identity
- Make it your own
- Spread the word about the UN Decade
- Let’s Bring Back Forests
- Let’s Green Our Cities
““Be like a tree in pursuit of your cause. Stand firm, grip hard, thrust upward. Bend to the winds of heaven..”
Richard St. Barbe Baker
Forests of Memory. Forests of Learning. Forests for Life. 