I’m never leaving the Maitland!
Maitland River, ON (Photo by NCC)
Growing up in southwestern Ontario, I had heard tales of the Maitland River near Goderich, and Ontario’s west coast along Lake Huron. However, it wasn’t until I started working with the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) that I began...
My first month as an intern
NCC's 2018 Alberta Conservation Interns group shot (Photo by NCC)
Birds, barbed wire and brome, oh my! The first month of my internship with the Nature Conservancy of Canada’s (NCC’s) Conservation Volunteers (CV) program in the Alberta Region has been busier than I ever could have imagined. From...
From office to woods: NCC’s 2018 National office field trip
NCC National and Ontario staff at annual field trip, Backus Woods, ON (Photo by NCC)
On May 25, many Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) National office staff visited our Backus Woods property in Norfolk County, Ontario, for our annual staff field trip. I’ve been working for NCC for almost two years and this was my second...
Regeneration ablaze on the Rice Lake Plains
A black oak engulfed in smoke from the prescribed burn at Hazel Bird Nature Reserve. Black oaks are tolerant of low-intensity fires, allowing them to thrive in tall grass prairie ecosystems. (Photo by NCC)
“Why is that on fire?” ― a burning question I have received from many curious folks on my Instagram account after posting videos of a prescribed burn that took place at the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) Hazel Bird Nature Reserve...
Getting my feet wet with field work (literally)
Excited to be in the field (Photo by Lynn Pinnell)
As university students, we learn the theory behind conservation and read journal articles about the findings of studies that took place out in the field, but rarely do we get the chance to participate in real field work. I feel incredibly lucky...
Bringing communities together: The Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup
Hauling foam, a buoy and other marine debris during a 2016 Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup. (Photo courtesy of Rachel Schoeler)
As an avid open water swimmer, I learned to respect our waterways while fighting through the smack and splash of ocean waves during long training swims. I fell in love with our waterways during calm, quiet morning swims out on the lake. And I...
NCC's Pelee Island fox squad on a mission to clean up Ontario's deep south
Gray fox pup (Photo by Ken Canning)
Making homes for Ontario’s rare and elusive gray fox takes a lot of work. In the fall of 2017, the Nature Conservancy of Canada’s (NCC’s) Pelee Island fox squad travelled to the island in the province’s deep south to do...
Emerald in the rough
Hine's emerald dragonfly at Minesing Wetlands, ON (Photo by Chris Evans)
Deep in the heart of the Minesing Wetlands, southern Ontario’s third-largest wetland system, lives a mysterious creature. It is thought to inhabit only 50 distinct locations in the entire world, most of which are concentrated around the...
The value of volunteers
Conservation Volunteers selfie (Photo by NCC)
How do you measure the value of a volunteer? At the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC), volunteers contribute their time, skills and passion toward our mission of conserving natural landscapes. They help us save money and achieve more with less....
Conservation, the cowboy way
Waldron shareholders at the King Ranch (Photo by Karol Dabbs)
I was raised within a ranching family. I grew up in southern Alberta, fixing fences in the summer heat and feeding livestock in the winter. I’ve been riding horses since I was three years old, was a member of my local 4-H club and I read the...
