Fall Colours Remind Us to Protect What We Love: Nature
Dear Supporter,
The cooler fall weather has many of us trying to squeeze in a few more special moments in nature before bundling-up season arrives.
Here at CPAWS Manitoba, we're having a lot of fun helping connect 64 kids at 3 Winnipeg schools to nature through our Environmental After School Program.
We've got some great hikes coming up in the event listings below. And we're also looking forward to setting our Keep Manitoba Wild tent up at a few more farmer's markets and festivals - including Nuit Blanche on Saturday night.
Our hardworking team of conservation ambassadors have inspired over 11,000 Manitobans to declare their support for conservation campaigns since June. If you stopped by one of our tents and signed a postcard, thank you! You’re helping safeguard Manitoba’s wild spaces for future generations of people and wildlife. If you haven’t had a chance yet, you can take action on our website.
Fall is also election season. We are seizing the opportunity presented by Winnipeg's upcoming civic election to call on all 11 mayoral candidates to pledge to protect Assiniboine Forest. A simple 2/3 vote of city council is all it would take to pave over this paradise. We're expecting at least 5 mayoral candidates to join us at a press conference Saturday in Assiniboine Forest. You can learn more on our campaign page and take action here.
Yours in Conservation,
Ron Thiessen
Executive Director
CPAWS Manitoba
7 Tips For Taking Stunning Nature Photos
Fall presents a fantastic opportunity for stunning nature photography. From capturing the changing leaves in Manitoba’s vast forests or the fog over its cool waters, there’s many opportunities to combine your passion for photography and the natural environment. Find out how in this short blog or and dive deeper in this summary of a webinar.
Manitoba Must Match Federal Pledge to Protect 30% of Lands and Waters by 2030: CPAWS Press Release
Manitoba urgently needs to match a federal pledge to protect 30% of our lands and fresh waters in order to mitigate the impacts of climate change and respond to a devastating loss of habitat for threatened species, CPAWS said in a press release after Minister of Environment and Climate Change, the Honourable Steven Guilbeault, on Tuesday called upon provinces and territories to "rally behind." Read our press release here.
Why Young Climate Activists Should Get Involved in Conservation
From Indigenous water activist Autumn Peltier to Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg and beyond, young people are at the forefront of the environmental movement. Tens of thousands of students have taken to the streets of countries around the world to participate in the School Strike for Climate - including here in Manitoba. We explored how young climate activists can get involved in environmental conservation in a blog to mark International Youth Day.
CPAWS Manitoba Environmental After School Program
We are working with schools in the Winnipeg area to deliver programs designed to get kids excited about being outside and spark an interest in the nature world. Students spend 90 minutes playing games and learning about Manitoba's animals, plants, climate, trees, soil and more in their school yards.The six-week program incorporates inquiry and exploration-based learning, stations, group games, and crafts for students to take home. Learn more about the program -- and how you can bring it to your child's school -- on the program page.
Upcoming Events
We have lots of great hikes coming up and will be announcing new lunctime webinars soon. Be sure to subscribe to our weekly events newsletter so you don't miss out on a chance to join us.
Saturday, Sept 24: Group Hike through Assiniboine Forest (Free) || Winnipeg || 2 p.m. || Click to register
Monday, Sept 26: Winnipeg Mayoral Forum on the Environment (Free) || Winnipeg || 7- 9 p.m. || Click to register
Saturday, October 15: Group Hike at the Pinawa Suspension Bridge (Free) || near Pinawa, MB || 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. || Click to register for 11 am || Click to register for 1 pm
Saturday, October 29: Spooktacular Halloween Hike in Birds Hill (Free) || Birds Hill Provincial Park || 11:00 a.m. – 3 p.m. || Click to register for 11 am
|| Click to register for 12 pm || Click to register for 1 pm || Click to register for 2 pm || Click to register for 3 pm
Saturday, Nov 19: Group Hike at LaBarriere Park (Free) || Winnipeg || 11 a.m. or 1 p.m. || Click to register for 11 am || Click to register for 1 pm
Saturday, Dec 3: Group Hike at Bois des Esprits (Free) || Winnipeg || 11 a.m. or 1 p.m. || Click to register for 11 am || Click to register for 1 pm
Help Protect Assiniboine Forest
Winnipeg already trails the nation in public greenspace. Without your support we could fall even further behind: a simple 2/3 vote of city council is all it would take to open Assiniboine Forest to development. We are seizing the opportunity presented by the upcoming civic election by calling on all 11 mayoral candidates to pledge to protect Assiniboine Forest. Click here to use our simple tool to have your voice heard.
Show Your Support for Connecting People to Nature
More than 7,500 people participated in CPAWS Manitoba Nature Club activities like webinars, hikes, paddle nights, nature photo contests, and programming at schools and daycares last year. We're hoping to reach even more in 2022. Please help us continue to connect people to nature. Any amount is appreciated. Tax credit receipts are issued for gifts of $20 or more. Click here to donate today.
Need-to-Know Nature News
Here are some of the news pieces that have caught our attention recently:
- Spruce Woods Provincial Park is officially Manitoba’s first dark-sky preserve! Read more in this CBC Manitoba ’s article.
- Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard and his family are giving ownership of the company valued at $3 billion US to a trust so the profits can be used to fight climate change. Read about his remarkable generosity in this CNBC article.
- Manitoba's Hudson Bay Lowlands is a vast land that is ecologically and culturally invaluable. This National Audubon Society blog delves into the importance of this area to the Indigenous people who call it home, and provides an overview of the birdlife here.
- As the temperature in Canada's boreal forests rises, the risks from forest fires and pests like bark beetles rises with it. Learn more about the impacts of climate change on the boreal forest in this CBC Explains piece.
- More than 200 endangered butterflies are flying free after being released by the Assiniboine Park Conservancy. The release was part of their annual butterfly conservation program. Read more about it in this ChrisD article.
Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to stay up to date with all the latest happenings in nature news! And sign up for our weekly event listings newsletter so you don’t miss out on upcoming Nature Club events.
