Canadian Wildlife Federation Class of 2016: Making a World of Difference

The Canadian Wildlife Federation (CWF) provided 30 young Canadians with work experience and opportunities to explore careers in conservation in 2016.

• turtle research
• shoreline assessment 
• species at risk research
• marine conservation 
• wildlife education
• community outreach
• videography and wildlife photography

Hear testimonials and find out more below about the activities of our 22 Summer Interns, which includes four participants who are also engaging in CWF’s Canadian Conservation Corps pilot, and our team of eight senior high school students who learned about, and carried out, conservation as part of a CWF High School Exchange Program: 

CWF Summer Interns Anna Heiter, Jenny Kenmir, Anne Cameron and Mitchell Sattler were part of CWF’s Canadian Conservation Corps (CCC) pilot and also served as CWF Interns.  This program, designed for gap years, seeks to involve young Canadians in conservation. 

CCC includes three components:

1. outdoor adventure
2. conservation
3. education

All four Interns engaged in a sea kayaking expedition offered by Outward Bound to fulfill the outdoor adventure component.  The education and conservation placements included the following:

• Jenny Kenmir worked in Hamilton, ON, at the McQuestern Urban Farm and Bienenstock Playgrounds.  She also carried out WILD Education activities in the Ottawa area at camps such as at the Constance Creek Wildlife Refuge and the Radical Science Camp and at events such as the Ottawa Carleton District School’s Environmental Stewardship Day celebrations.

• Anna Heiter worked with our partner, the City of Calgary, at the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary, and at the Ralph Klein Park, which is home to the Shepard Wetland and the largest storm water treatment wetland in Canada.  She also facilitated CWF education activities at events such as the Calgary Mayor’s Environmental and at camps such as the Girl Guides of Canada Mosaic National Camp in Sylvan Lake, AB.

• Anne Cameron helped to support work associated with microplatics research with our partner, the Ricciardi Lab at McGill University, and carried out CWF educational activities at their facility, the Redpath Museum, in Montreal.

• Mitchell Sattler, who was based at the Vancouver Aquarium, delivered ocean education programs to children and youth in day and overnight camps. He also participated in field work with the Stanley Park Ecological Society, where he sampled water at Stanley Park, mapped the location of invasive plant species and carried out Beaver surveys at Beaver Lake, British Columbia. 

Much of this innovative work experience was funded by Canada Summer Jobs from Service Canada. CWF was also pleased to be involved in the Young Canada Works program.

Eight Canadian students participated in an exchange program that was held in association with the World Conservation Congress to provide unique opportunities to learn about conservation and network with youth who shared common interests in the environment and the out-of-doors. This experience was organized with Kupu, a Hawaiian organization that provides hands-on training programs in the areas of conservation, sustainability and environmental education.  Students were matched in teams and worked together on hands-on conservation projects, learned about conservation, and presented at the #NatureForAll Pavilion at the IUCN World Conservation Congress.

The contributions of the Class of 2016 were showcased at the IUCN World Conservation Congress.