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<\/p>\nWhat started as a pandemic project in Grade 6 became a cool nature app for Albertans, leading to a prestigious $100,000 scholarship for Edmonton high school senior Josh Kirsch.<\/p>\n
From small acorns, mighty oaks grow, and for Kirsch, his own growth rings started from a childhood fascination with the natural world.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve always been really interested in nature, like ever since I was a toddler, I just always loved exploring the outdoors. During COVID, I was gifted a book called Heritage Trees of Alberta by the librarian in my elementary school,\u201d Kirsch recalled.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis book really sparked my interest. It talked about just over 300 heritage trees in the province that all had a cool story behind them, a reason to be recognized as significant,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cSince then, over the years, I\u2019ve started documenting and researching my own trees, so I go around Alberta.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy parents raised me as a very outdoorsy child. I was even though I grew up in the city, I was always walking on walking trails and exploring the river, and it\u2019s just always been so fascinating to me to see what grows out there.\u201d<\/p>\n
It\u2019s become a family pursuit, from urban areas like Edmonton and Calgary to small towns and high mountain back country, and Kirsch has memorized most of the species that can grow in the province.<\/p>\n
He had an eagle eye for significant or weird or extra-big trees, and those one-off trees with unique and interesting stories.<\/p>\n
Soon it branched out into a working understanding of computer science.<\/p>\n
\u201cOver the years, I\u2019ve started to get more and more data for measurements and kind of where things grow and stuff. Around grade seven, I created a simple Google map of the heritage trees in Edmonton,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
In Grade 9, he found the software limiting him.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was gathering so much information that I kind of outgrew that, so I started researching different platforms that I could kind of move to, and ultimately I ended up deciding that it would be more worth my time to build my own platform than to use something existing,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u2018Remarkable trees\u2019<\/p>\n
Over the past year, he has coded his website, ancientrootsalberta.ca, and app completely from scratch. With the headline \u201cExplore Alberta\u2019s Most Remarkable Trees,\u201d the site has so far categorized 387 wood beauties by category so enthusiasts can view champions, centurions, native sentinels, storytellers, ancient trees, unique growth pattern, largest circumference, tall trees, edible fruit and prime species examples.<\/p>\n
So far, the oldest boulevard tree in Edmonton is a Siberian elm planted between 1910-1920, with a height of almost 13 metres and a canopy that spans over 25 metres.<\/p>\n
With its own city ID number, it\u2019s remarkable not only for its immense size but also for its unique place in Edmonton\u2019s urban history.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis individual has stood for over a century as one of the city\u2019s most distinctive streetside plantings \u2026 The city has even modified the surrounding sidewalk to accommodate the tree\u2019s vast surface root system, a rare recognition of its significance and living presence in the streetscape,\u201d the site says.<\/p>\n
At the encouragement of the city, residents back then experimented with species that were not commonly used.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis Siberian Elm stands as a living reminder of Edmonton\u2019s early urban forestry efforts,\u201d the site reads.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Joshua Kirsch, designed an amazing app to let nature aficionados check out Alberta\u2019s most amazing trees, and he\u2019s headed to U of A on a $100K scholarship.Photos taken on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. Photos by Shaughn Butts \u2013 Postmedia<\/p>\n
People can submit their own trees for consideration for the site, Kirsch said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf they have a tree in mind that they think is special or really cool, they can submit it to have it viewed on a public map. I track measurements, all the different species, and of course, you can see all these trees on a map or in a simpler view,\u201d Kirsch said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt hasn\u2019t been like a school project or anything \u2014 it\u2019s just honestly a wondrous sport for me.\u201d<\/p>\n
One of his main goals is to help people understand how awesome Alberta\u2019s forest is. \u201cPeople often think that you have to go to B.C. or California to see any even remotely cool tree. We have amazing forests here in Alberta. We have super cool trees with awesome back stories, and I honestly think people just need to know more about that,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s much to appreciate. The province\u2019s arboreal wonders clean the air, pump out oxygen, store carbon that would otherwise impact the climate, shelter creatures of all sorts, and prevent soil erosion.<\/p>\n
And they are literally cool, their leaves and needles a respite and shade from summer heat.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a lot about just like sharing the appreciation of nature in Alberta, and then also more specifically for people my age. We live in an amazing province, and if my app can even, or my website can even get one or two, or a dozen people outside exploring trees, that\u2019s an amazing goal for me,\u201d Kirsch said.<\/p>\n
Cut back on the hoops<\/p>\n
Kirsch loves basketball, but has cut back to focus on schoolwork.<\/p>\n
That dedication paid off.<\/p>\n
His school counselor, Jacqueline Rohac, encouraged him to apply for the Schulich Leader Scholarship, which gives a hundred lucky and well-prepared Canadian high school grads $100,000 for STEM programs.<\/p>\n
Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths \u2014 his app was all about STEM.<\/p>\n
\u201c(Rohac) saw how my app connected those pillars of science and then math for a bunch of the formulas I use, so I applied for it,\u201d Kirsch said.<\/p>\n
Jasper Place backed him in the one scholar nominee per school set up, and he won the Canada-wide competition.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s really amazing, because they\u2019re going to connect me with all the other people, and there will be a mentorship aspect from the professors. I get so many connections \u2014 and I just get to be more involved with U of A,\u201d Kirsch said.<\/p>\n
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