The places we protect for nature must be connected
An elk killed by a vehicle in Alberta's Bow Valley. (Photo by Kelly Zenkewich, Yellowstone to Yukon)
Written by Dan Kraus, Wildlife Conservation Society Canada, Karen F. Beazley, Dalhousie University, Jodi Hilty, Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative, Christopher J. Lemieux, Wilfrid Laurier University and Pam Wright, University of Northern...
Learning new things in familiar places
Forest canopy in Backus Woods, ON (Photo by Neil Ever Osborne)
To most people, warmer weather means soaking up the sun at the beach, making a northern weekend getaway to a picturesque cottage, or spending time with friends and family around the campfire or barbeque. While this applies to those of us in the...
World Habitat Day 2021: There is no protected habitat too small to benefit biodiversity
Great blue heron with a cityscape in the background (Photo by iStock)
October 4 is World Habitat Day, which has been celebrated annually by the United Nations since 1986. This year’s theme is accelerating urban climate action. The day is followed by Urban October, a month where we are encouraged to reflect on...
Mouse-ear hawkweed: Friend or foe?
Mouse-ear hawkweed flower (Photo by mhalsted, CC BY-NC 4.0)
A species is considered invasive or alien when it is located outside its natural distribution and threatens humans and/or the environment. There aren’t a lot of clear answers about the impact of certain invasive species and the problem is...
Going paperless: Introducing a new data collection tool
NCC intern and volunteers conducting a tree survey at Upper North Saskatchewan River Basin (Photo by NCC)
Over the past few years, the Nature Conservancy of Canada’s (NCC’s) Saskatchewan Region has used pen and paper to complete their rangeland health assessments. Rangeland health assessments are score-based sheets that are used to monitor...
One weekend in nature across Canada
Dark-eyed junco at Shaw Wilderness Park (Photo by Katie Diespecker)
Every summer, the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) hires student interns to work in a variety of areas across the organization. This year’s communications interns, Asha Swann and Katie Diepspecker, lived in different parts of the country:...
Why nature in Canada’s cities could change conservation forever
Colpitt Lake in the Shaw Wilderness Park (Photo by Adam Cornick, Acorn Art & Photography)
When the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) was founded almost 60 years ago, there was growing recognition that unmanaged urban expansion was threatening nature. In fact, our first project was to try to save a section of Rattray Marsh along the...
A thank you letter to the young professionals of conservation
The 2021 eastern Ontario team at Elbow Lake, ON (Photo by NCC)
Spring is one of the best times to be a conservation biologist with the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC). I get to dust off my field boots, turn off my laptop and get back outside. There is a beautiful rhythm to resuming field work, and my to-do...
Volunteers make Big Valley flourish
Volunteers and staff prior to planting (Photo by NCC)
The Qu’Appelle River Valley is one of Saskatchewan’s prominent scenic landscapes. Its picturesque slopes and waterways host a wide variety species and offer views unlike any other in the province. I’ve driven through this region...
A week away: Cape Breton Island
Cain's Mountain (Photo by Mike Dembeck)
Being able to work directly in nature is one of the reasons I love working as a conservation intern for the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC). Gaining more field work experience at NCC as the summer weeks progressed made for an epic, four-night...
