Healthy by nature: Getting outside for the benefit of nature and ourselves
The personal experiences we have with nature help us form a lifelong connection to the environment. (Photo by NCC)
We’ve all been there and felt the negative effects of stress. With the pace of the world today, stress is a familiar companion for many of us. Though stress is a normal physical reaction, it can have negative effects on your health,...
The seasons of nature: Witnessing an ever-changing landscape along the Agassiz Interpretive Trail
Agassiz Trail, MB (Photo by NCC)
At the Nature Conservancy of Canada’s (NCC’s) Agassiz Interpretive Trail in southeast Manitoba, a change of seasons brings a different tune to the landscape. In spring, you may hear sharp-tailed grouse rustling in the forest or...
Open for business: Make your own insect hotel
An insect hotel (Photo by Marzena7 CC0)
Many insects and their relatives, such as ladybugs, wild bees, beetles and spiders, require shelter. Make your backyard or green space open for vacancy by making an insect hotel! Similar to a bee hotel, an insect hotel helps provide shelter for...
Connecting with nature, people and snowshoes on Stony Mountain, Manitoba
Snowshoers at Stony Mountain Prairie Preserve, MB (Photo courtesy of Julie Sveinson Pelc/NCC staff)
Winter on Manitoba’s wide open prairies is cold, windy and dark, and it seems to go on forever. It is easy to hibernate indoors all winter, under a warm blanket by the fire, with a good book and warm drink, but I wanted this winter to be...
Innovative learning experiences are putting the art back in science
The Herbarium Project, 2017, Contemporary Art Gallery, Vancouver, BC (Photo by Four Eyes Portraits)
If you’ve heard the terms “science art” or “sciart,” you’re probably familiar with the idea of using visual art to represent, explain or bring attention to some aspect of science. The wonderful realm of science...
From the ground up: How Bunchberry Meadows came to be a place for nature exploration
A winter hike on the Bunchberry Meadows property (Photo by Brent Calver)
Just outside of one of Canada’s busiest cities lies an outdoor adventure waiting to be had, with trees as tall as the eye can see. Located just 30 kilometres from downtown Edmonton, the Nature Conservancy of Canada’s (NCC’s)...
Skis with wolves
Cross-country skiing in search of wolf tracks on the Kenauk property (Photo by Jaimie Vincent)
What do you get when you combine a picturesque winter forest landscape, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing and wolf surveying? A dream trip is what I would have said just a few weeks ago. The answer, however, is a very real adventure that I...
Volunteer to learn
A lesson on vernal pools by Jenna Siu (Photo by Daniel Abdelmassih)
On September 29, 2018, I participated in my first Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) Conservation Volunteers event. We planted 175 early succession native trees (i.e., trees typically found in young forests) in Happy Valley Forest to help take...
The future of conservation is female (part two)
Esme Batten (Photo by Esme Batten)
In honour of International Women’s Day (March 8), over the course of the month, we are celebrating three young women working for the Nature Conservancy of Canada’s (NCC’s) Ontario Region. We speak with them to learn more about...
Frick, I love nature: Comedy as nature education
"Frick, I love nature" logo (Photo by Stephen Robinson)
Last fall I was on a trip with my girlfriend on Vancouver Island. While there, we spent a good chunk of our time exploring its national parks and learning about how life survives in those particular ecosystems. While soaking it all in, I had a...