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...
The fossils of Camden East Alvar
A particularly exposed section of the Camden East Alvar, an NCC property just west of Kingston, Ontario. (Photo by NCC)
Doing field work in the middle of the summer can be hot, but doing it on an alvar feels even hotter. An ecosystem formed with little to no soil on top of limestone bedrock, alvars typically have large areas of low-lying vegetation and exposed...
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...
Introduction to NCC and field work
Samantha Stegen at Prospect, NS (Photo by NCC)
Since a young age, I have had a deep appreciation for nature, leading me to complete a bachelor of science degree in environmental science at Acadia University in 2020 and begin my master’s of resource and environmental management at...
UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration: 5 ways NCC volunteers are contributing
Restored wetland, Pelee Island, ON (Photo by NCC)
2021-2030 marks the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, indicating the urgent need for humans to prevent and protect our Earth’s ecosystems from further degradation. As a new summer intern with the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC),...
The essential Asquith aspens
Trembling aspen at Asquith property, SK (Photo by NCC)
It’s difficult to imagine many natural habitats without the presence of trees. Trees provide humans and wildlife with essential needs; it’s easy to take them and forests for granted. In their many shapes, sizes and varieties, trees...
Drawing attention: Putting a love for nature on paper
My nature journal entry on the plant life at Yamnuska Mountain, AB (Photo by Emma Dunlop/NCC)
Nature journaling; two words that I recently have noticed cropping up together, in everything from youth education curriculums to mindfulness and meditation workshops. My first encounter with nature journaling was during my reluctant participation...
Interns and olives
Autumn olive (Photo by James H. Miller)
When I started my Canadian Conservation Corps internship (a three-part program funded in part by the Canadian Service Corps, a youth-focused nature and conservation experience) with the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) as a conservation...
Calling in the corps — the Canadian Conservation Corps
CCC participants cutting invasive phragmites stems (Photo by NCC)
They say that many hands make light work. Well, I don’t know if the hard-working young people who hauled brush, cut phragmites stems or collected buckets of acorns would tell you that the work was “light” but I can certainly say...
