Welcome back Marcy Mahr!
KCP Stewardship Coordinator
Marcy has rejoined KCP's team and will be working with KCP's new Program Manager, Juliet Craig. Marcy began work with KCP back in 2009 when it was EKCP by providing conservation property evaluations to the Securement Team. She then moved onto serving as KCP's Stewardship & Communications Manager co-leading the broadening of the partnership to include both the East and West Kootenays. In the meantime, she's sharpened her abilities in landscape-level conservation action planning, mucked around in wonderfully rich wetlands, tracked countless western toads by headlamp, and inspired Basin youth to know their watersheds. Marcy enjoys linking the worlds of science, stewardship, sustainable agriculture and environmental education. Her lifelong passion for conserving biodiversity has shaped her professional career over the past 28 years, and led her to work in amazing places all over western Canada and the US. Marcy has a M.Sc. in Plant Ecology and a B.A. in Sociology/Anthropology & Northern Studies. She lives with her family on a small permaculture farm in the Slocan Valley.

eNews 
Monthly Submissions
We hope you enjoy your monthly conservation update! You can click here at anytime during the month to check out current news and events on our blog. As always, please submit any news you'd like to share with our network by the third week of each month to communications@kootenayconservation.ca.

Monthly Partner Feature
Wayne Stetski
Wayne Stetski is currently our Member of Parliament for the Kootenay-Columbia riding, was Mayor of Cranbrook from 2011 to 2014, and was Regional Manager for the Kootenays responsible for BC Parks, Fish and Wildlife and Ecosystems from 2002 to 2009 but says his real claim to fame is being the Manager of the East Kootenay Conservation Program (EKCP) from 2009 to 2011!

"Working for EKCP with its many partners, coordinating the purchases of private land for conservation and helping to secure funding for conservation projects on private land was very rewarding. Some of the highlights include delivering projects on behalf of the Regional District of East Kootenay's Conservation Fund, organizing a workshop on The Future of Agriculture in the East Kootenay, and implementing a new program to recognize Leaders in Private Land Conservation on an annual basis. I also organized the first two meetings with interested groups from the West Kootenay to explore transitioning from EKCP to the "new" Kootenay Conservation Program."


Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation
New Land Stewardship Grant Program Announced
The Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation is pleased to announce the availability of a new Land Stewardship Grants, made possible through an endowment provided by the Province of British Columbia for operations and management costs on conservation lands. They are now requesting letters of intent from eligible organizations requesting funding from this program. The deadline for submitting letters of intent is July 15th.

Friends of Kootenay Lake Stewardship Society
The Future of Kootenay Lake: What Matters to YOU?
Have your say in the future of Kootenay Lake by taking the Kootenay Lake Community Values Survey, June 15 - July 15. Eligible surveys submitted are entered into a cash draw for $150. The survey is spearheaded by the Friends of Kootenay Lake Stewardship Society and will provide a snapshot of values from across the lake to help support planning and management for development, recreation and stewardship of Kootenay Lake.The survey is open to residents, visitors, and businesses in Nelson, Kaslo and RDCK electoral areas A, D, E or F. You must be 18 years or older to take the survey.

Selkirk Geospatial Research Centre
SGRC Drone Project Takes Off
The SGRC Drone program lifted off with its first project this week. Integrated Environmental Planning students were restoring habitat around a pond close to the Hugh Keenleyside Dam in Castlegar, BC. The plan was to use the drone to produce imagery of the site before and after restoration.

Fish & Wildlife Compensation Program
Funded Projects for 2016-17
Within its Columbia Region, the Fish & Wildlife Compensation Program (FWCP) is funding 55 fish and wildlife projects in 2016-17, valued at more than $5.8 million, including 14 projects under the Upper Kootenay Ecosystem Enhancement Plan (UKEEP). Across the province, FWCP is funding more than 116 fish and wildlife projects for a total of approximately $8.7 million.

Columbia Wetlands Waterbird Survey
Spring survey results record nearly 26,000 birds!
During this past April the Columbia Wetlands Waterbird Survey (CWWS), a coordinated bird count, had 77 volunteers that went to 86 sites over three survey dates. The CWWS recorded over 25 800 individual birds in total this spring, with the highest species count owing to Mallards with 1963 individuals on April 3rd. The second highest count was 1949 individual American Wigeons recorded on April 10th. There were 242 bird checklists submitted with 111 different species recorded. Additionally, an earlier survey was also done to capture peak swan migration and was conducted with the use of a fixed-wing aircraft, which flew over the entire length of the Columbia Wetlands. Through this aerial survey, 756 individual swans (Trumpeter and Tundra Swan) were counted.

The KCP encourages partners to take advantage of our eNews - send your relevant content for submission to info@kootenayconservation.ca 
Vancouver Foundation Field of Interest Grants
Deadline: July 8 
The Vancouver Foundation provides Field of Interest Grants to organizations with socially innovative projects that work towards meaningful outcomes in four specific fields of interest: Arts and Culture; Education and Training; Environment and Animal Welfare; and Health and Social Development.

CBT Recreation Infrastructure Grants
Deadline: July 11
The Trust announced the $9-million, three-year program in January 2016. It provides financial support to help communities and groups build new recreation infrastructure or upgrade existing recreation infrastructure. 

Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation Land Stewardship Grant Program 
Deadline: July 15
The Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation is pleased to announce the availability of a new Land Stewardship Grants, made possible through an endowment provided by the Province of British Columbia for operations and management costs on conservation lands. They are now requesting letters of intent from eligible organizations requesting funding from this program. The deadline for submitting letters of intent is July 15th.

TD Friends of the Environment Foundation
Deadline: July 15
The TD Friends of the Environment Foundation supports a wide range of environmental initiatives, with a primary focus on environmental education, urban greening and enhancing biodiversity, and energy conservation.

Grassland and Rangeland Enhancement Program
Ongoing intake
Delivered for the Columbia BasinTrust by the Kootenay Livestock Association, the Grassland and Rangeland Enhancement Program supports efforts to maintain and/or enhance grassland resources while meeting conservation, environmental and recreational objectives. Objectives include promoting the stewardship of the grassland resource, striving to maintain and enhance biodiversity and long-term fish and wildlife productivity in public grassland ecosystems and improving compatibility between livestock management and recreation use. Currently accepting applications for projects for the 2016 funding. 
Friends of Kootenay Lake Stewardship Society
Program Manager
Friends of Kootenay Lake Stewardship Society is hiring a permanent, long term, Program Manager. This is  an exciting opportunity to play a diverse role in water stewardship in the West Kootenay region. The Program Manager will lead stewardship initiatives including education and outreach, shoreline restoration, lake planning, and environmental monitoring.  The Program Manager will be responsible for all aspects of day-to-day operation of FOKLSS, including fundraising, project administration, board support, and program planning and implementation.

Columbia Basin Environmental Education Network
Wild Voices for Kids Community Educators
Are you a forester or geographer? A biologist or mountain guide? A historian or First Nations storyteller? Do you have some unique knowledge, skill or expertise you can share with students? Wild Voices for Kids provides training and assistance with program development, promotes presenters and their programs, and provides cash honoraria. 

Center for Large Landscape Conservation
Conservation Scientist/Spacial Ecologist
The Conservation Scientist/Spatial Ecologist will oversee CLLC's Science Program. The program is designed to bring landscape scale conservation science more fully into large landscape conservation practice by delivering actionable science to practitioners in support of informed action. 
Spatially Explicit Capture-Recapture (SECR) Modeling 
July 5 - 7, Castlegar
SECR is used for estimating animal population density and related parameters. The method combines a spatial population model and a spatial (distance-dependent) detection model. It has been used extensively for the analysis of data from DNA hair snags, automatic cameras, and conventional traps. 

Grow Your Own Mushrooms Workshop
July 6 & 8, Kimberley & Cranbrook
Cranbrook Food Action Committee and Wildsight Kimberley/Cranbrook have teamed up to bring you 'A Mushroom Workshop' yet again, 'everything you need to know about growing your own'. The first sessions in April sold out, meaning this is the public's second chance to partake in these informative workshops being offered in Kimberley and Cranbrook. The first workshop is coming up on Wednesday July 6th in Cranbrook and second on Friday July 8th in Kimberley. 

Toadfest
July 27 & 28, Summit Lake Provincial Park
Toadfest is a free, fun, family event designed to raise awareness about the Western Toad, including its natural history and life cycle, habitat requirements, and the challenges it faces. Toadfest also offers a unique opportunity to help carry a few toadlets across the road! There will be lots of interactive displays, as well as several other live critters on display.

IUCN World Conservation Congress
Sept 1 - 10, Hawai'i
Held every four years, the IUCN World Conservation Congress helps shape the direction of conservation and sustainable development. Join the IUCN to define the sustainable path for moving 2015's historic climate and sustainable development agreements into action.

Columbia Wetlands Waterbird Survey 
Sept 29, Oct 5 & Oct 15
Do you want to collect baseline data on waterbirds?  The 2016 Columbia Wetlands Waterbird Survey fall dates will be Thursday September 29th, Wednesday October 5th, and Saturday October 15th from 10am to 1pm. Participating in this valuable project is a wonderful way to learn about birds and the biodiverse Columbia Wetlands.  Come and join in on this fun and valuable initiative!  
For more information or to sign up for the surveys, please contact Rachel Darvill at rachel@wildsight.ca or call 250-344-5530.

Inquiring Voices Sustainability Symposium
Sept 30 - Oct 2, Glacier National Park
The Columbia Basin Environmental Education Network will host their 2016 Sustainability Symposium at the Alpine Club of Canada's Wheeler Hut in spectacular Glacier National Park. This small-scale professional development retreat brings together educators who live in the same bioregion to form a rich learning community meet to share, support, and collaborate with one another. 

Roundtable on the Crown of the Continent Annual Conference 
Oct 13 - 14, Fernie
The Roundtable is an ongoing forum to bring together people who care about this special place. It is based on the observation that the future of the Crown of the Continent is being shaped by over 100 government agencies, non-government organizations, and place-based partnerships. While these various initiatives operate somewhat independent of each other, the Roundtable provides a unique opportunity to connect people that share a common commitment to the region.

Bio-engineering: A Restoration Course
Oct 18 - 19, Revelstoke
Join the Columbia Mountains Institute of Applied Ecology for this course. Soil bioengineering is an applied science that uses live plant materials, rocks, soil and landscape elements to perform an engineering function such as slope stabilization, soil erosion control or seepage control. Course instructor, David Polster, has been involved in the reclamation of severely disturbed sites for over 35 years.  He was president of the Canadian Land Reclamation Association and is on the board of the Society for Ecological Restoration (BC Chapter and International board). 

International Land Conservation Network (ILCN) Cross-Boundary Collaboration Workshop
Oct 27, Minneapolis
The ILCN will host a daylong session at the Minneapolis Central Library focused on cross-border collaboration for private land conservation. Featuring case studies from Mexico, Canada, the European Union, the United States and others, we will explore successful models of cross-border conservation collaboration, planning, and fundraising. Presenters will share lessons learned and discuss how their successes may be replicated in other localities. There will also be time to network with other international participants and to discuss how the ILCN may best serve this community. 

Great Northern Landscape Conservation Cooperative: 7th Annual Northwest Climate Conference
Nov 14, Stevenson
The annual NW Climate Conference is the region's premier opportunity for a cross-disciplinary exchange of knowledge and ideas relating to climate impacts and adaptation. The conference brings together up to 400 researchers, resource managers and policy makers from academia, public agencies, sovereign tribal nations, non-governmental organizations, and the private sector, to share the latest climate science, challenges to infrastructure, industry, environment and communities, and adaptive solutions. Abstracts will be due on July 15. 

Outdoor Council of Canada Field Leader Certification Course and Get Outdoors Workshop
Nov 23 - 26, Fernie
Join CBEEN for the Field Leader certification course. This is a revolutionary approach for training leaders to lead in low-risk terrain. It is a powerful tool for empowering adults to take children and youth outside for education and activity. This intensive two-day experiential and inquiry based course introduces the roles and responsibilities of the leader. Students discover the values and systems that promote high-quality low-risk programs. CBEEN will also host a WildBC Get Outdoors Workshop. This 1-day outdoor workshop includes a new educator's guide which supports teachers in getting their students outside and engaged in experiencing the outdoor classroom. Activities include hands-on mapping, cultural explorations of special places, values exploration and secondary level projects.
Influencing Conservation Action
What Research Says About Environmental Literacy, Behavior, and Conservation Results
This research summary paper was developed by the National Audubon Society in partnership with, EETAP, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, TogetherGreen, and the North American Association for Environmental Education. 

Atlas of the Breeding Birds of British Columbia
British Columbia's first Breeding Bird Atlas! 
The British Columbia Breeding Bird Atlas partnership is proud to publish online one of the largest volunteer-based initiatives in British Columbia's history, and a major new resource for conservation. Leading British Columbian bird experts describe the distribution, abundance, habitat and conservation of about 320 species of birds that bred and potentially bred in the province between 2008 and 2012, beautifully illustrated by some of British Columbia's finest photographers. Detailed maps show where each species occurs and how common it is. Graphs help show what is behind the patterns of distribution and abundance, and a series of tools allows you to explore and download the information.

 

If you have news or announcements that you would like to share via our eNews, please email them to info@kootenayconservation.ca by the 26th of each month.