December 2022 | Volume 14 Issue 12 | |
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Happy December!
The SK PCAP staff (Carolyn, Caitlin and Shirley pictured above) and 5 dedicated volunteers spent last week at Agribition, where we had a booth in the Agri-Ed Pavilion and offered the Pitch It for Pipits and Plovers game show. About 10,000 kids came through the Agri-Ed Pavillion over the last week, where we talked about species at risk and how many of our prairie species overlap well with cattle ranching. We have some new newsletter subscribers that signed up at Agribition, so welcome! We would like to thank the CAP-Agriculture Awareness Initiative Program for funding to develop our new interactive display! Also a big thank you to our volunteers: Becky, Kaytlyn, Emily, Allyson and Bea!
The 2023 Prairie Conservation and Endangered Species Conference is in Calgary, February 21-23, 2023. Registration just opened, you can register here! There are limited spots so make sure to register early! The Call for Abstracts deadline was also extended to December 16th. You can submit an abstract here!
The November webinar was Sheri Monk, Snakes on a Plain, who discussed snake conservation. You can find Sheri's presentation on PCAP's YouTube Channel.
The December webinar will be Carla Church from the Manitoba Habitat Heritage Corporation, discussing Tiger Salamanders! You can register here!
And finally, we would like to thank our sponsors for their generous support: Agriculture Awareness Initiative Program, Camp Wolf Willow, Canadian Forage and Grasslands Association, EcoFriendly West, Enbridge, Information Services Corporation, Mosaic Company, Saskatchewan Cattlemen's Association, SaskEnergy, SaskPower, SaskTel, SaskWater, Wildlife Habitat Canada and Environment and Climate Change Canada, as well as the continuous support of all the PCAP Partners.
Please note the PCAP office will be closed from December 22nd, 2022 - January 4th, 2023.
From everyone at SK PCAP, we hope you all have a wonderful holiday season! Stay safe and take care!
Carolyn Gaudet, SK PCAP Manager
pcap@sasktel.net
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Theme: Prairie Collaboration, Connection, and Conservation
After a short hiatus due to COVID, Alberta PCF is excited to announce the conference's return to Alberta. The conference will be located in Calgary at the Calgary Zoo!
You can find more information on the website: pcesc.ca and their social media channels: Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Registration is now open, you can register here.
Early-bird registration is available until January 15th, but spots are limited, so register soon!
The Call for Abstracts was extended to December 16th, so if you didn't get a chance to submit an abstract, here's your chance! Your abstract can be submitted through this form.
Awards
There two types of awards presented at the Prairie Conservation and Endangered Species Conference: the Prairie Conservation Awards and the Young Professional Stewardship Grant. You can find more information here. The deadline for nominations or submissions is January 11th!
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South of the Divide Invasive Species Survey by Native Plant Society of Saskatchewan
If you live or have land in the South of the Divide region (Milk River
Watershed - see map in the survey), please take the short survey on invasive species and species at risk for a chance to win a $250 gift card. Your odds of winning are good and your input will help us better serve the area. This survey will only be available until the end of the year so complete it soon!
The survey is here: https://www.research.net/r/SOTDNPSS
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Partner Spotlight:
Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society - Saskatchewan Chapter
Submitted by Kelsey Olson, CPAWS-SK
This past month, in partnership with Outter Limits, Patagonia, and OnWard UP, we hosted an evening to Celebrate the Prairies! The venue was full, a local band - The Garrys - played, Saskatchewan-made beer from 9 Mile and Rebellion Brewing was enjoyed, and two very special videos on Indigenous-led and community-led stewardship were featured.
The first video featured stewardship of the prairie grasslands in southwest Saskatchewan. This film highlighted how the agricultural community plays a significant role in the conservation of this imperiled ecosystem. By making this documentary, we wanted to bring attention to these groups of land stewards and how conservation within agriculture is essential to preserving native prairie.
The second film of the evening featured our good friends and partners, Mistawasis Nêhiyawak. Our partnership and friendship with Mistawasis Nêhiyawak is one that is interwoven with a desire to lead urgent stewardship in bison conservation and rebuild strong relationships to one another and with the landscapes we share. Together, in partnership with NCC and Parks Canada, we are leading boots-on-the-ground stewardship to protect, conserve, and revive the endangered Sturgeon River Plains Bison herd (SRPB).
Indigenous and local stewardship are powerful when it comes to protecting nature. There’s a vision, an appreciation, and a profound love for the lands they live on and the wildlife they co-exist with. CPAWS Saskatchewan is grateful to all those who steward their lands and waters, and who consider the wildlife they share the landscape with. We are also grateful for our partnerships and support from local organizations, which have been integral to our ongoing work to address the threats that are currently facing native prairie and the SRPB herd. We invite you to view these films, as well as other videos from our conservation mini-documentary series by visiting our Facebook page (CPAWS-Saskatchewan) or website (cpaws-sask.org)!
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Stay tuned for news about our upcoming Native Prairie Speaker Series webinars! | |
Tigers on the Prowl: An Introduction to Salamanders on the Prairies
Speaker: Carla Church, Manitoba Habitat Heritage Corporation
Tues December 13th at 12pm CT
Register here!
More information to come!
Save the date!
January 2023 Native Prairie Speaker Series
Woody Encroachment in SK
Speaker: Xulin Guo, University of SK
Tuesday January 31st at 12:00pm CT.
Register here!
More information to come!
Please visit our Native Prairie Speaker Series webpage regularly for upcoming topics, dates, and registration details.
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Weeds, Birds and Bats:
A Landowner Workshop
December 7th at 2 PM in Glentworth, SK
Western Canada Conference on Soil Health & Grazing
Dec 13-15, 2022
Edmonton, AB
Foraging Into the Future
Dec 14-15, 2022
Swift Current, SK
SK Beef Industry Conference
Jan 24-26, 2023
Saskatoon, SK
Annual SAW Conference
Jan 31-Feb 1, 2023
Saskatoon, SK
Prairie Conservation and Endangered Species Conference
February 21-23, 2023
Calgary, AB
The Second Perennial Cool-Season Invasive Grasses of the Northern Great Plains Workshop
March 15-17, 2023
Fargo, ND
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SaskOutdoors has a great podcast called Let's Talk Outdoors, recent episodes included the Treaty Land Sharing Network, risky play, outdoor education, among others.
Check it out here!
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2022/23 Education Programs:
Presenting Sponsors:
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2022/23 Education Program Supporting Sponsors
Camp Wolf Willow
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Carolyn Gaudet, Editor, Saskatchewan Prairie Conservation Action Plan Newsletter | |
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SK PCAP gratefully acknowledges financial support in 2022-2023 from:
Agriculture Awareness Initiative Program, Camp Wolf Willow, Ducks Unlimited Canada, EcoFriendlySask.ca, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Parks Canada - Grasslands National Park of Canada, Saskatchewan Cattlemen's Association, Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture, Saskatchewan Ministry of Environment - Fish and Wildlife Development Fund, SaskEnergy, SaskPower, SaskTel, SaskWater, University of Regina, University of Saskatchewan - College of Agriculture and Bioresources, Water Security Agency and Wildlife Habitat Canada.
SK PCAP gratefully acknowledges in-kind support for 2022-23 from:
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada - Science and Technology Branch, Canadian Parks and Wilderness Association, Environment Canada - Canadian Wildlife Service, Friends of the Royal Saskatchewan Museum, Meewasin Valley Authority, Native Plant Society of Saskatchewan, Nature Conservancy Canada, Nature Saskatchewan, Parks Canada - Grasslands National Park, Prairie Wind & Silver Sage, Ranchers Stewardship Alliance Inc., Redberry Lake Biosphere Region, Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities, Saskatchewan Association of Watersheds, Saskatchewan Bison Association, Saskatchewan Burrowing Owl Interpretive Centre, Saskatchewan Cattlemen's Association, Saskatchewan Environmental Society, Saskatchewan Forage Council, Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture, Saskatchewan Ministry of Environment, Saskatchewan Ministry of Energy and Resources, Saskatchewan Ministry of Parks, Culture and Sport, Saskatchewan Stock Growers Association, Saskatchewan Stock Growers Foundation, Saskatchewan Wildlife Federation, SaskEnergy, SaskOutdoors, SaskPower, Society for Range Management - Prairie Parkland Chapter, South of the Divide Conservation Action Program Inc., University of Regina, University of Saskatchewan - College of Agriculture and Bioresources.
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