Local organizations Nature Nerding and Patch Farms are launching a new program for children in the Eastern Townships that connects farming and agriculture with the natural world.

Starting this summer, WonderMud will provide children with the opportunity to explore the land that is Patch Farms, and learn just how much farming is “founded in nature” and how important it is to protect it, said Meagan Patch, one of the educators behind WonderMud.

The Quebec Ministry of the Environment‘s Fight Against Climate Change, Wildlife and Parks is urging the Eastern Townships population, particularly border residents in the Municipal Regional Counties (MRC) of Brome-Missisquoi and Haute-Yamaska, to remain vigilant after a recent increase in the number of cases of raccoon rabies in Vermont near the Canada-U.S. border.

Appalachian Corridor was honoured with the Prix de L’acquisition de l’année at the first edition of the Gala des Prix de la conservation Nature Sauvage last week for its efforts on the Mont Gale conservation project.

Appalachian Corridor is a conservation organization which protects biodiversity and natural environments in the Eastern Township. It was given the award for preserving 14 hectares of land in the Mont Gale sector of Bromont with the help of citizen’s group Protection Mont Gale last year, said Maxime Comtois, head of communications for the Réseau de milieux naturels protégés (RMN), gala organizer.

After kick-starting historical walking tours with locals a couple of years ago, Brome-Missisquoi resident Patricia St-Onge has launched an official website, Eastern Townships Tours, to bring new experiences to residents and tourists alike.

With a passion for history, St-Onge was offering walking tours to locals that wanted to discover the stories and landmarks of the Eastern Townships, including a Potton Springs site tour in 2022.

The Town of Brome Lake (TBL) is receiving $100,000 in financial aid through the  Municipal Infrastructure Program for Seniors (PRIMA) that will go towards a sidewalk project in Knowlton.

The funding received through PRIMA will be used to add sidewalks starting from the IGA in Knowlton to Victoria Street, from Victoria Street to Centre Lac-Brome, and then from the Brome Lake Community Centre to Rue Centre, explained Cynthia Brunelle, director of Recreation, Tourism, Culture and Community Life.

The Town of Sutton is benefitting from a $98,000 grant through the  Municipal Infrastructure Program for Seniors (PRIMA) that will support the installation of lighting along Sutton’s bike path and in Goyette-Hill Park from the bike path to the parking lot.

According to Élizabeth Deit, director of Recreation, Community Life and Culture, the goal behind the project is to encourage senior citizens to take advantage of the bike path by providing more security through the addition of around 60 solar-powered bollards starting from Pine Street to Goyette-Hill Park.

Women’s groups in Quebec are raising their concerns around the 2024-2025 budget following Minister of Finance Eric Girard’s budget speech on March 12.

Mona Louis-Jean, interim director at ConcertAction Femmes Estrie, told CIDI that while the budget focuses on reinvesting in health and education “there is nothing that is there specifically for women,” which reflects the need for further analysis around how the government’s decision making can impact women.

The Town of Sutton is preparing to reconstruct the northern section of Western Street between Rue Principale Nord and Route 215 at an estimated cost of $7 million.

According to Mayor Robert Benoît, the reconstruction project has been years in the making and it will see a complete re-design of this particular section of the street. Benoît noted that the design concept for Western Street is meant to be “innovative” with the aim of providing more security to residents living on the street and pedestrians.

Despite the ups and downs in temperatures over the last few weeks, the production of maple syrup is still moving ahead in the Eastern Townships.

While warm temperatures over the course of a few days usually “put the broom stick in the spokes,” the temperatures haven't been warm enough in the area to deter maple syrup production too much just yet, according to Dave Hall, owner of Hallacres Farm and President of the Montérégie-Est sector of Les producteurs et productrices acéricoles du Québec.

After holding public consultations over the last year, the Town of Brome Lake (TBL) is in the final stages of developing its 2024-2028 strategic plan.

The TBL held two public informations sessions on Feb. 27 and Feb. 29 to present the overall vision and actions in the new strategic plan, but the next steps for the municipal council are to put together a timeframe and to create a clear financial picture for the projects and initiatives that it wants to carry out on the territory, explained TBL councillor Lee Patterson in an interview with CIDI.

Marking its 10th anniversary this year, social paediatric centre Main dans la main is seeking a bigger space to meet the growing demand for its services and to help support more vulnerable children in Brome-Missisquoi.

Élisabeth Lapointe, executive director of Main dans la main, told CIDI that since the centre opened ten years ago the demand for its services has increased dramatically and the need for community social paediatrics is high in Brome-Missisquoi.

The Townships Sun, a magazine exploring life and culture in the region, has launched its legacy edition in honour of 50 years of publication in the Eastern Townships.

The 50th anniversary legacy edition features stories and photographs of the past and present that highlight the evolution of the Townships Sun and “the community that it serves” over the last five decades, said Editor Rachel Garber.

Appalachian Corridor and Conservation des vallons de la Serpentine (CVS) have announced the protection of nearly 24 hectares of private land in East Bolton thanks to a donation on part of the Dandurand family.

According to Mélanie Lelièvre, executive director of Appalachian Corridor, the piece of land is located in “the heart of the Mont Chagnon forest core” and it plays an important role in the Eastern Townships’ conservation strategy, which involves connecting forest cores through conservation projects to create protected “wildlife corridors.”

The Quebec Anglophone Heritage Network (QAHN) and the Townshippers’ Association – two community groups that serve the English-speaking communities in the Eastern Townships – have received a boost in core funding from the federal government.

Over the next two years, QAHN will be receiving just under $44,000 and the Townshippers’ Association will benefit from an additional $68,400.

The Eastern Townships is gearing up for the solar eclipse on April 8 and local players and stakeholders are organizing activities to bring people together around the rare astronomical phenomena.

According to Lysandre Michaud-Verreault, communications director and official spokesperson for Tourism Eastern Townships, the Eastern Townships is one of the only regions in Quebec and North America where a total eclipse can be viewed for around 3 minutes and 30 seconds, while other areas that fall in its path will experience it for around 45 seconds.

The Municipality of the Township of Potton has adopted a resolution at its March 4 council meeting to seek out funding to develop Place de la Grange-Ronde into a cultural venue.

Place de la Grange-Ronde is the park that surrounds the historical round-barn in Mansonville, explained Mayor Bruno Côté. Work was carried out to restore the round-barn by the Potton Municipal Volunteer group in 2018, but the municipality stepped in to completely finish the project.

People in the Township of Potton are benefitting from the “Vegetables at Last!” project, funded by the Comité Estrien de saines habitudes de vie.

According to Emilie Turcotte-Côté, an agronomist that works with the committee and owner of Les jardins d’etc, the project is all about providing citizens with the opportunity to take part in different workshops to help them gain knowledge on how to build a garden and incorporate more vegetables in their daily diet.

The Yamaska Valley Optimist Club (YVOC) is back with its first in-person event for International Women’s Day since 2019 and the non-profit organization is changing things up this year through a collaboration with the Knowlton Players.

Lucy Davis, member of both the YVOC and the Knowlton Players, told CIDI that the group is ready to get back to celebrating with the community with a “Guess Who” style event.

Andréanne Larouche, Member of Parliament for Shefford, is reiterating her call to the federal government to find solutions for the distribution of local and regional weekly newspapers as the end of the Publisac in Quebec draws near.

The Publisac has been circulating for over 40 years and it acts as a distributor for weekly flyers, advertising, and many local and regional weekly newspapers due to its lower delivery costs. However, measures that were implemented at the municipal level in different areas of the province affected its business model and it became no longer viable.

The federal government has announced the extension of the Wine Sector Assistance Program with an additional investment of $177 million dollars over the next three years.

At a press conference held at Léon Courville on March 4, Pascale St-Onge, Member of Parliament for Brome-Missisquoi and Minister Responsible for the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec, told CIDI that the wine sector is an economic driver for Canada and the funding will allow vineyards across the country to start new projects, make new investments and address challenges.