Why your support matters

A Seasonal Greeting from Rick Bates

" As the end of year approaches and you’re making plans, hopefully you will be connecting with friends and family. And hopefully you will also connect with your wildlife family.

People — and the wildlife who shares their world with us — are seeing the effects of environmental issues every day. It’s impossible to ignore. Every major disaster, and every seemingly minor event, affects us in ways we couldn’t imagine before.

Fortunately, for Canadian wildlife, our team of researchers and scientists are putting in the time and resources to work on positive outcomes for the future of wildlife and habitat.

Canada is home to an estimated 80,000 species with potentially many more yet to be discovered.

Some, like moose, Canada geese, loons and beavers are iconic. Others are less known, but all species play an important role in Canada’s ecosystems and in the biodiversity of life on earth.

And thanks to our dedicated supporters, who understand and value biodiversity, CWF is able to continue to take a leading role in the conservation of terrestrial, freshwater, and marine environments. Here are just a few of the conservation outcomes you’ve been a part of:

• 732 hectares of habitat has been restored for the Monarch Butterfly and other pollinators with 199 rights-of-way managers joining in our habitat Community of Practice network and another 594 rights-of-way managers being trained in habitat restoration.
  
  
• New fishing methods being used to reduce entanglement threats to marine species. In 2022 alone 10 fish harvesters caught more than 154,221 kg of snow crab using on-demand gear.
  
  
• Engaging all Canadians to learn about and help monitor biodiversity with iNaturalist Canada, part of a global biodiversity database. Over 10 million observations have now been added by people in Canada, including more than 200,000 observations of species at risk. These observations help CWF and scientists from around the world track biodiversity and help to guide conservation actions.
  
  
• Training educators through CWF’s WILD Education to inspire students to care about conservation. This includes hands-on experiential workshops for youth and young adults such as habitat restoration projects, birdhouse building, guided hikes, and shoreline cleanups. These young folks are the future and instilling in them a passion and appreciation for nature and wildlife is essential if we want to create a better future for Canada’s wildlife.

One thing we do know about the future is you are helping us make it better! By working together, we can keep a vigilant eye on the changes to our climate and planet. By studying and most importantly taking action on our discoveries, we will create a better future for wildlife and habitat. A future where pollinators are abundant, marine animals can feed and breed safely in the oceans, grasslands in the prairies that protect the wildlife that live there and salmon can pass safely through the rivers and streams to their spawning grounds.

Thank you for having such a positive impact, for placing your trust in us and for keeping wildlife in your hearts at this time of year."