Arts Milton presents year 2 of Exclusively Inclusive: a series of 10 sidewalk murals by 5 artists on Hugh Lane celebrating diversity and inclusivity.

Growing Here and There features a selection of my favourite fruits that grow in Vietnam (and beyond): măng cụt (mangosteen), mãng cầu (soursop and sweetsop), me (tamarind) and vải (lychee). They’re delicious but seasonal and tricky to find.

Food is one of the ways I connect to my culture and in a way I associate the lack of access to cultural food -and with it the impending loss of cultural knowledge -with the ever decreasing number of plants and animals. The at-risk species depicted here live in the Halton region, including red mulberry, western chorus frogs, red-headed woodpeckers, King rail, Louisiana shrike and white wood aster.

These murals highlight lesser known species, create connections between the local community and my culture, and celebrate both! Growing Here and There stands for all the strange and delicious foods I love that may have been called funny names when I was younger.

The hope is that this mural will encourage people to try something new and keep an eye out for our little neighbours!