Connect to Nature in 2022
Dear Supporter,
Wow—what a wonderful, busy summer we've been having at CPAWS Manitoba. As always, the summer months seem to fly by in a blur of camping, hiking, paddling, and exploring our beautiful province.
What's new? We've moved into a bright new office space (stay tuned for our open office hours), and have been busy setting up our bright green CPAWS tent at farmers markets and festivals throughout Manitoba to gather support for conserving our province's special natural spaces. Our hardworking team of conservation ambassadors have inspired over 8,000 Manitobans to send letters to the provincial government since June.
If you stopped by one of our tents and signed a postcard this summer, 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 or check out the list of upcoming outreach opportunities below.
We've also had fun organizing some new nature club activities like paddleboarding lessons at Grand Beach—hosted in partnership with Allstoke Outdoor Co.—and lunchtime yoga classes in Whittier Park. More than 1,250 people have registered for our in-person events so far this summer. We'll be continuing our group hikes and other outdoor activities into September and through to the new year.
As summer comes to a close, we’re looking ahead to fall, when we'll be ramping up our efforts on the Fisher River Cree Nation Conservation Areas Initiative.
The goal of the FRCN Conservation Areas Initiative is to protect the health of Manitoba’s southeastern Interlake so it can continue to provide sustainable economic opportunities and support cherished lifestyles and cultures.
Fisher River Cree Nation (FRCN) and CPAWS Manitoba met with Ministers Wharton and Lagamodiere in June for a productive discussion about establishing a network of protected areas in Manitoba's southeastern Interlake. We appreciate the province's support of FRCN’s conservation initiative. Learn more and sign a letter of support here.
Yours in Conservation,
Ron Thiessen
Executive Director
CPAWS Manitoba
Want To Sign A Postcard to Help the Environment?
We've been blown away by the response to our conservation campaigns this summer (and, occassionally by high winds that dragged at our tent!) Sure, it's hard to say no when someone asks "Want to sign a postcard to help the environment?" But more than 8,000 postcard signed in seven weeks? Mindblowing. The kindness of so many people who stopped by our tents at festivals and farmers markets this summer has warmed our hearts after a long and isolating pandemic. We've still got lots of plans to pitch our outreach tents in the coming weeks. You can look for us at:
- St. Boniface Farmers Market (August 25)
- Stonewall Quarry Days (August 19-20)
- Grand Beach lagoon (August 21)
- Wolseley Farmers Market (August 23 and September 22)
- Alleyways in the Exchange (August 26)
- Elmwood Night Market (August 26)
- Night Market at Assiniboia Downs (August 28)
- Fall Fair at the Red River Ex (September 1-5)
- Manyfest (September 9-11)
- South Osborne Farmers Market (September 14)
- East St. Paul Farmers Market (September 18)
- Nuite Blanche (September 24)
Greenway School Students Rally to Protect Polar Bears
“We like ice, so just be nice – save the polar bears!” Grade three and four students at Greenway school spent weeks learning about polar bears and climate change, writing letters to the government and designing posters for a rally at the zoo. Read about their work - and polar bear jokes - in this blog.
Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Manitoba's Arctic
Manitoba is home to some of the largest concentrations of beluga whales and polar bears on the planet, along with hundreds of species of birds nesting along the coast of Western Hudson Bay. It is also losing ice faster than most parts of the Arctic. Our Arctic Speaker Series drew together some of the most brilliant minds studying Manitoba's Arctic and subartic regions in a series of seven webinars. Read some highlights – from using snot to measure the stress levels of beluga whales to how climate change is affecting polar bears in Churchill – in this blog. You can find all of the webinar recordings on our Vimeo page, free to watch at any time.
Upcoming Events
We have more weekend outdoor meetups coming up, plus we have our nature webinars if you want a cozy lunch hour during the week!
Sunday, Aug 21: Paddleboard lessons with Allstoke Outdoor Company ($33) || Grand Beach Lagoon || 10 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. || Click to register
Tuesday, Aug. 23 & Tuesday Aug. 30: $5 Paddle Night with the Manitoba Paddling Association || 80 Churchill Drive || 5–9 p.m. || Click to register
Wednesday, Aug 24: Climate Justice in Manitoba webinar (Free) || on Zoom || 12:30–1:30 p.m. || Click to register
Saturday, Aug 27: Group Hike on the Whiteshell River Trail (Free) || Whiteshell ||11 a.m. or 2 p.m. || Click to register
Thursday, Sep 8: Music & Nature Cello Performance ($6-12) || Assiniboine Park || 7–8:30 p.m. || Click to register
Saturday, Sep 10: Group Hike on the St. Adolphe Friendship Trail (Free) || St. Adolphe ||11 a.m. or 1 p.m. || Click to register
Help Protect the Southeastern Interlake
The southeastern Interlake is a bustling landscape of sandy shorelines, abundant forests, rich wetlands, and thriving communities. The Fisher River Cree Nation Conservation Areas Initiative aims to develop a regionally-tailored conservation plan which will support sustainable economic developments. Take action to protect one of Manitoba’s most popular destinations. Click here to use our simple letter-writing 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:
- Canada needs Indigenous leadership to ensure nature’s life support systems can sustain people and wildlife into the future, says CPAWS Manitoba Executive Director Ron Thiessen. Read more in this letter to the editor published in the Winnipeg Free Press.
- CPAWS is working to protect half Manitoba's lands and waters. Learn about the Seal River Watershed campaign and how you can take action to help Keep Manitoba Wild in this interview with CTV Morning News.
- Thousands of children in Manitoba have benefitted from our Outdoor Learning program. Find out about what we're doing to help kids get outside in this interview with CTV Morning News.
- The CPAWS Manitoba Nature Club is designed to help connect people to nature. Find out about our fun group activities like paddle nights in this interview with CTV Morning News.
- Climate change is warming Canada's great expanse of boreal forest, bringing greater risk of fire and disease. Learn about the impacts in this long read by CBC Meteorologist Christy Climenhaga.
- A beautiful blue parrot has returned to the wild two years after being declared extinct. Read about the remarkable conservation victory in this CBC article, which includes a link to an interview with the biologist on the Current radio show.
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.
