5 tips on how to enjoy winter if you’re not a winter person
Pug wrapped up in a blanket — how I feel about winter. (Photo by Unsplash, Matthew Henry)
Have you ever seen the commercials where people frolic about in the snow or cross-country ski in the woods, and thought, “Canadian winter is great, but I’m more comfy on my couch”? I have, and I don’t think I’m alone...
Thanks, all of you wonderful people!
A Conservation Volunteers event in 2015 attended by Virden Girl Guides. They got their hands dirty cleaning up old shingles and debris from the Jiggens Bluff property in Manitoba. (Photo by NCC)
As the community relations manager in Manitoba, when people want to work for the Nature Conservancy of Canada’s (NCC’s) Manitoba Region, one of the faces they’ll often see in an interview process is mine. During these interviews,...
Giving away a legacy
Ephraim Island, NB (Photo by NCC)
A source of great joy in my work at the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) is learning the stories behind the lands that we protect. Perhaps the most touching stories are the lands that are donated to NCC. I have come to appreciate that, as...
A love letter to the mountains
Hiking in the Canadian Rockies (Photo courtesy of Gayle Roodman/NCC)
Dear mountains, You don’t know me personally, but you might recognize me by my feet. I’ve skied, hiked, snowshoed and biked your contours for the past several decades. You see, you changed the course of my life. When I finished high...
Thank you, Ontario volunteers
Plugs for the Prairies CV event at Hazel Bird Nature Reserve, 2019 (Photo by Chelsea Marcantonio)
Volunteers are an integral part of the Nature Conservancy of Canada’s (NCC’s) work. Whether it be in the field or in the office, our volunteers are always eager to lend a helping hand. Although the pandemic has temporarily put the...
Re-wilding myself
Conservation Volunteers planting trees at at the Meeting Lake 03 property, SK (Photo by NCC)
Field work, one of the highlights for many Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) staff, was a little harder to come by this year because of COVID-19, but thanks to hard work by engagement staff and with all the safety protocols in place, we were able...
The wonder of winter wetlands
Brighton Wetland from a nearby field in early fall. Note that the cattails in the distance are already turning brown and falling down. (Photo by NCC)
Two summers ago I spent a lot of time trekking through beautiful wetlands, both while working at NCC and for leisure. I loved every moment of my time there, whether I was wading out into knee-deep water to hand pull invasive European frog-bit,...
Lessons learned from volunteers
Group of volunteers after a clean up at the Jim Prentice property 2019 (Photo by David Thomas)
In a typical year, around the time of International Volunteer Day (this year, December 5), I would be wrapping up our final volunteer events for the year and switching gears to planning for the next year. But as we all know, this year has been...
Whitebark pine research in the Darkwoods Conservation Area
The view from the top of Mt. McGregor capturing some of the remote and wild terrain within the Darkwoods Conservation Area. (Photo by Stephanie Jouvet)
The rugged beauty of the Purcell and Selkirk mountain ranges extend far into the distance, as I follow the calmness of Kootenay Lake from its northern reaches, south to where it fades into the marshlands of the Creston Valley Wildlife Management...
A field season in the Rice Lake Plains that was far from plain
Rice Lake Plains, ON (Photo by NCC)
This past field season spent as a conservation technician with the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) was one to remember. As a soon-to-be graduate of the master's of environmental science program at the University of Toronto, specializing in...
