Squirrel for Mayor is a research-creation project that uses art, humour, and civic engagement to explore how we can build healthier, more resilient cities.
Inspired by the principles of Squirrealism, the project invites people to see Victoria from a different perspective—one that recognizes the city as a living, multispecies landscape rather than a place occupied solely by humans. Housing, transportation, infrastructure, urban forests, biodiversity, and public spaces are not separate issues; they are interconnected parts of the same ecosystem.
Victoria is internationally significant because it exists within one of the world’s rarest urban Garry oak ecosystems. The urban forest is not something outside the city—it is part of the city itself. The trees that line our streets, the wildlife that moves through our neighbourhoods, and the natural systems that reduce flooding, cool our communities, and support biodiversity are all forms of living infrastructure.
Squirrel for Mayor examines how public policy, urban planning, and environmental stewardship can work together to ensure that growing communities remain healthy, resilient, and ecologically rich. Through research, public education, community partnerships, and creative storytelling, the project encourages informed civic participation and long-term thinking about the places we call home.
Why a Squirrel?
The squirrel represents curiosity, adaptability, and planning for the future. By viewing the city from the canopy instead of the council chamber alone, Squirrel for Mayor asks different questions about how neighbourhoods function and who benefits from the decisions we make.
Humour has a long history of encouraging civic conversation. Like Vancouver artist Vincent Trasov’s Mr. Peanutmayoral campaign in 1974 and James Skwarok’s Mr. Floatie campaign, Squirrel for Mayor uses satire not to trivialize important issues, but to make them more approachable, memorable, and accessible to the public.
These projects demonstrate that creativity can influence public policy by inviting people to see familiar problems in unexpected ways.
From Satire to Stewardship
Although it began as a performative art project, Squirrel for Mayor has evolved into a platform for research, policy analysis, and public engagement.
Projects have included documenting urban forest governance, reporting on innovative Garry oak mapping projects using LiDAR and geoAI, participating in community conservation initiatives, examining provincial housing legislation and its environmental implications, and encouraging conversations about how cities can accommodate growth while protecting the natural systems that sustain them.
At its heart, Squirrel for Mayor asks a simple question:
How can we build cities where multispecies communities thrive together?