Nature Conservancy of Canada pays tribute to key builder
Co-founder J. Bruce Falls passes away at the age of 100
A Toronto man who was instrumental in the establishment of Canada’s largest land conservation organization has passed away.
With profound gratitude and respect, the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) remembers J. (James) Bruce Falls, PhD, who died Saturday at the age of 100 in his family home of nearly 70 years.
In 1961, Falls was among four members of the Federation of Ontario Naturalists (FON, now Ontario Nature) who felt the need to conserve natural areas for the benefit of nature and the species they sustain. They consulted the Nature Conservancy in England and Nature Conservancy in the United States looking for advice. This small but dedicated group of volunteers launched a program to protect natural spaces and promote conservation. Falls served as a co-founder, trustee and chair of NCC.
“We got a committee together to discuss it and decided it was a national problem. It wasn’t just in Ontario, so we recommended to the Board of FON that we set up a Nature Conservancy of Canada,” Falls said during an interview for NCC’s 50th anniversary.
“In many ways for many people, contact with nature is important. We need it for our own health, if nothing else. We needed areas where scientists can study nature to try and unlock some of the information that we need to manage the rest of the environment,” Falls added.
Falls was invested as a member of the Order of Canada in 2017 for his ground-breaking research to study bird behaviour and for his lifelong leadership in nature conservation. A professor at the University of Toronto, he conducted leading field studies of birds and small mammal populations in Algonquin Park for over 35 years. In addition to founding NCC, Falls helped establish Bird Studies Canada (now Birds Canada).
"Dr. Bruce Falls was a pioneer and true force for nature,” said Catherine Grenier, president and CEO of the Nature Conservancy of Canada. "He taught us all to cherish our natural world. Today we mourn the loss of a generous and thoughtful man who made an immense contribution to conservation across this country. His passion and dedication will be appreciated by generations to come.”
“Dr. Falls was a mentor and inspiration to many in Canada’s conservation community. He was a huge advocate for protecting nature, not only for plants and wildlife but for people and our own physical and mental well-being. We extend our sympathies and warmest thoughts to his three children, Stephen, Kathryn and Robert, their families, and Dr. Falls’ many friends,” said Dana Kleniewski, acting vice-president for NCC in Ontario.
There will be a celebration life for Dr. J. Bruce Falls in May. Memorial gifts can be made in his memory to the Nature Conservancy of Canada and Birds Canada.
About
The Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) is the country’s unifying force for nature. NCC seeks solutions to the twin crises of rapid biodiversity loss and climate change through large-scale, permanent land conservation. As a trusted partner, NCC works with people, communities, businesses and government to protect and care for our country’s natural areas. Since 1962, NCC has brought Canadians together to conserve and restore more than 15 million hectares. To learn more, visit natureconservancy.ca.
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