Chinook Institute of Community Stewardship
Open Space Toolkit for Alberta
Provincial project

Grant: $15,000

The purpose of the project is to build the capacity of rural residents and landowners to understand and practice sustainable land use and conservation of open natural space. A practical community workshop and resource series, the Toolkit will increase awareness and understanding of open space conservation issues and options, build community capacity to implement available conservation tools and processes, and generate locally appropriate strategies and solutions. The Toolkit will result in rural residents and landowners taking concrete action to conserve open space on private lands, contributing to broad scale conservation of habitat, wildlife movement corridors and ecological processes.

Global Forest Watch Canada
Alberta’s Remaining Wildland Forests
Provincial project

Grant: $20,000

Global Forest Watch Canada’s mapping project will identify the remaining small blocks (10,000- 50,000 ha) of intact forest landscape in Alberta to provide a more detailed picture of these remaining areas than exists to date. This will lead to an increased awareness among forest management decision-makers within the environmental community, in government, in industry, and in other interested groups, of the scope and the locations of these intact blocks, which may be identified as areas of opportunity for conservation and/or sustainability initiatives. The results of the mapping effort will be published in a report, and maps and data layers will be made publicly available on the GFWC website.

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Northern Alberta boreal forest

Alberta Fish and Game Association Operation Grassland Community
Regional – Southern Alberta grasslands

Grant: $8,330

Operation Grassland Community will expand its successful Burrowing Owl Management Plan program to an additional 10-15 landholders beyond the 20-25 landholders already budgeted. The program will provide each landholder with specific information about burrowing owls or the potential for burrowing owls on their land, how to protect burrowing owl habitat, and how to plan specific farm/ranch activities to sustain both the owls and the farm/ranch business. The goal of this specific project is to maintain current burrowing owl habitat, which in turn will aid in the recovery of owl numbers.

Canadian Parks & Wilderness Society – Edmonton Chapter
Community Forestry Initiative
Regional – Grande Cache

Grant: $20,000

This project will support the Alberta environmental community while exploring a community based forestry initiative for the community of Grande Cache. The group feels that forest community sustainability and an increase in protected areas will occur with direct links to Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification and value-added products.

The FSC certification will address many of the environmental issues in this sensitive area including an immediate conflict between the need for protection of a threatened species, the Woodland Caribou, and pending development of the last remaining core habitat for the species.

Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society - Calgary / Banff Chapter
Rocky Mountain Highways Project
Regional - Banff National Park

Grant: $19,840

This project will focus on the understanding and mitigation of impacts of highways on Alberta's Rocky Mountain ecosystems. The project will link extensive involvement in consultations respective to the twinning of the Trans Canada Highway in Banff National Park with public education respecting future options for Highway 3 in the Crowsnest Pass region of Alberta. In collaboration with public groups, the lessons learned from the Banff experience will be presented to the regional public via video production, a broadly distributed booklet, and a community workshop in the Crowsnest Pass . 

Big Lake Environment Support Society (BLESS)
Big Lake - Sturgeon River Summer Environmental Education
Local - St. Albert

Grant: $3,480

BLESS’s program will educate St. Albert youth and adults about the natural features and wildlife found in and around the Sturgeon River and the Big Lake Natural Area and the issues related to these natural resources. The educational materials will be delivered to interested members of the general public during regularly scheduled free events over the summer. The program will target elementary-aged students but will appeal to ages six through adult. From June to August a minimum of three public events will be held each week.

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Bow Valley Naturalists Society
Trail Improvements to Lower Middle Springs Trail
Local - Banff

Grant: $3,500

The trail improvements will protect the sensitive plant communities along the lower Middle Springs Trail by installing modest boardwalk structures and by using natural on-site materials to direct pedestrian traffic to preferred routes. The local community will be engaged in the process through participation in trail management and education, including the installation of  interpretive panels and development and distribution of brochures about the special nature of the site and the need to protect it from further disturbance.   

Boys’ and Girls’ Club Edmonton
Inner City Youth Environmental Program
Local - Lake Wabumun, Edmonton

Grant: $5,000

A grant from Alberta Ecotrust will allow for the transportation of youth from Edmonton to Camp Discovery at Lake Wabamun over the summer. The youth will then have the opportunity to complete 12 different interactive environmental learning modules focusing on the ecology of Northern Alberta. Through their ecological experience, it is hoped the youth will develop a respect and an understanding for environmental issues and make continued preservation a priority.

Cochrane Environmental Action Committee
Cochrane High School Sustainable Development Project
Cochrane

Grant: $5,000

Cochrane High School's science department, along with 12 students, is embarking on an ambitious project to convert a portion of their energy use over to renewable energy sources. Their goal is to install 24 large solar panels and one residential wind turbine on the school's roof. When completed, Cochrane High School will be one of the first high schools in the country to produce renewable energy. The group seeks to demonstrate that renewable energy is a viable alternative, that students can make a positive difference to our climate, and that we can reduce GHG emissions.

Friends of Dr. E.W. Coffin Elementary
School Ground Naturalization
Local - Calgary

Grant: $5,000

Dr. E.W. Coffin School already has successful garden planters containing perennials, but they are relatively small, located in the middle of a paved area, and cannot be considered truly representative of a natural area. This project will naturalize a large, barren and exposed area in the schoolyard to provide a natural area that will be available for study and play. Benefits include improved access for student and public education, expansion of existing environmental programs, and shade for the school grounds.

Southern Alberta Environmental Group
Design and Evaluation of an Urban Stormwater Education Program
Local - Lethbridge

Grant: $13,750

This evolving education program will help urban residents in the Oldman River basin to incorporate beneficial management practices (BMP's) into their daily lives to protect the quality of water in the Oldman River and its tributaries. The objectives during this phase of the project are to review and summarize existing programs with similar goals and evaluate their application to the education program; and to survey current knowledge, attitudes and behaviours in Lethbridge and use the results to tailor an education program to our community. The results will also be used as a benchmark for measuring the success of the education program.

West Athabasca Watershed Bioregional Society
Hardisty Creek Restoration Project Demonstration Site
Local - Hinton

Grant: $15,000

The goal of this project is to restore fish habitat and extend fish passage connectivity to a particular urban reach of Hardisty Creek in Kinsmen Park, Hinton. Construction of these fish habitat restoration elements will contribute to a net gain of fish habitat in Hardisty Creek and allow community and school volunteers to proceed with riparian restoration activities. The demonstration site will be used to educate the community and students about cumulative watershed issues, restoration science, and action.

Westmount Elementary School Council
School Ground Naturalization
Local - Strathmore

Grant: $3,470

This naturalization project is designed to provide a unique, relaxing, educational and biologically diverse area for student and community use throughout the years. The project includes areas for imaginative play, such as a riverbed and log bridge, and an amphitheatre for an outdoor classroom. The project will assist in bringing the environment to the classroom and will provide, among other things, hands-on experience with environmental learning and increased knowledge of local plant and animal communities.