Green Job Helps Winnipeg Youth Restore a River and Inspire the Next Generation of Environmental Stewards

Flowing quietly through Winnipeg’s neighbourhoods, the Seine River offers a rare opportunity for residents to connect with nature within the city. Paddlers glide through its winding channels, and communities gather along the greenway that surrounds it. 

But protecting this urban waterway takes constant effort. 

Sections of the river have accumulated debris and invasive species that threaten the health of the ecosystem. Addressing those challenges requires the dedication of local organizations like Save Our Seine, a small environmental non-profit committed to protecting, preserving, and enhancing the Seine River greenway. 

In the summer of 2025, that mission gained a powerful ally in Monique Ellison, a University of Winnipeg environmental studies student whose passion for conservation found a natural home on the river. 

Ellison joined Save Our Seine as the Summer Team Coordinator through the CPRA Green Jobs Initiative, funded by the Government of Canada’s Youth Employment and Skills Strategy (YESS) program. In this role, she led the organization’s Summer River Team — a group responsible for maintaining and restoring sections of the river while helping community members better understand and appreciate this important natural space. 

For Ellison, the opportunity felt like a perfect fit. 

Growing up near Lake Winnipeg sparked a lifelong interest in water conservation and environmental restoration. When she discovered a role that involved spending the summer paddling along the Seine River, removing invasive species, and cleaning debris from the water, she immediately felt connected to the work. 

“Everything about the job aligned with my values,” she explains. “I grew up around water, so being able to work on a river every day — removing invasive species, cleaning it up, and helping people connect with it — was incredible.” 

What she didn’t expect was just how much history the river held beneath its surface. 

In some sections of the Seine, more than a century’s worth of garbage has accumulated — remnants of a time when the river was treated as a dumping ground. Over the years, cleanup crews have uncovered a surprising range of items hidden beneath the water, including an old projector from decades past. In one area, the shoreline itself contains what is now recognized as a historic landfill site — a stark reminder of the river’s past. 

Yet the work of Save Our Seine is steadily transforming the waterway. 

Ellison remembers spending an entire day with the team clearing debris from a single section of the river, removing an entire truckload of garbage. Today, that same stretch of water is almost unrecognizable. “When we go back there now, there’s hardly anything left,” she says. 

As Summer Team Coordinator, she guided a team of four youth employees working closely together on the river each day. The role required her to balance environmental work with team management, ensuring everyone remained safe, productive, and supported. 

“It’s not like a typical job where everyone is working separately,” she says. “We’re together all day, every day, so you really learn how to manage personalities and keep everyone working well together.” 

Over the course of the summer, Ellison strengthened her leadership skills, learning how to navigate challenges and confidently seek guidance when needed. 

Her supervisor, Rob Perron, Vice-President of Save Our Seine, witnessed that growth firsthand. 

“Monique transitioned from being a highly capable team member to a leader and mentor for the entire summer team,” he says. “We saw her confidence grow as she tackled challenges independently and advocated for her ideas.” 

For a small environmental organization like Save Our Seine, opportunities like the Green Jobs Initiative are transformative. 

“Programs like Green Jobs act as a vital bridge between the urgent needs of ecosystems like the Seine River and the career aspirations of the next generation,” Perron explains. 

Small environmental non-profits often operate on limited budgets, making it difficult to take on large-scale restoration work. Wage subsidies allow organizations like Save Our Seine to hire youth teams capable of tackling labour-intensive projects such as debris removal and invasive species management, while also helping build the next generation of environmental leaders. 

For Ellison, that sense of purpose was one of the most meaningful parts of the experience. 

“Everyone is there because they care about the work,” she explains. “You’re all trying to make a difference, whether that’s cleaning up the river or helping people connect with nature.” 

As Ellison and her team paddled through the greenway, they frequently met residents exploring the water by kayak or canoe. Many returned throughout the summer, stopping to talk about the work being done. 

Over time, the river became something deeply personal to her. 

When she first started the job, she didn’t know much about the Seine River. Today, she finds herself telling everyone about it. 

“Now people joke that it’s ‘Monique’s river,’” she says with a laugh. 

After completing her environmental studies degree, Ellison hopes to build a career in the environmental non-profit sector — continuing work that protects natural spaces while helping communities reconnect with them. 

But perhaps the most powerful impact of the experience lies in what continues long after the summer ends. 

Each piece of garbage removed, and each stretch of river restored represents more than environmental progress — it reflects a renewed relationship between people and the natural spaces around them. 

For Monique Ellison, that relationship has become deeply personal. What was once an unfamiliar river is now something she feels connected to, protective of, and proud to share with others. 

And through opportunities like the Green Jobs Initiative, young leaders like her are not only restoring vital ecosystems — they are becoming the stewards who will carry this work forward, ensuring places like the Seine River are not only preserved, but truly valued, for generations to come.