The application period for Local Conservation Fund projects for 2027 projects is now open! Applications are accepted until October 30, and can be submitted by non-profit organizations and Indigenous Nations for projects within the participating areas of both the Columbia Valley and the Regional District of Central Kootenay.
The dozens of reports, maps, and videos developed as part of the 7-year Kootenay Connect Priority Places initiative, from 2019 to 2026, are now available in a user-friendly searchable database. These resources highlight important research and work done on the ground, including ecosystem restoration and monitoring, biodiversity inventories, habitat enhancement, and conservation of at-risk species.
KCP’s Kootenay Connect Priority Places (KCPP) initiative is the topic of an article in the Spring/Summer 2026 issue of 'The Trench'. The article highlights research by Kootenay conservation ecologist Greg Utzig, who has spent four decades analyzing how climate change will impact the Kootenays’ ecological corridors.
Kootenay Conservation Program (KCP) is a broad partnership […]
Audrey Ehman, instructor in the School of Environment and Geomatics at Selkirk College in Castlegar, is passionate about inspiring the next generation of land stewards. She teaches the first year of the three environmental diploma programs: Applied Environmental Science and Planning Technology, Forest Technology, and Recreation, Fish and Wildlife.
In May 2026, KCP hosted a West Kootenay Stewardship Committee meeting in Nelson, and in June 2026, an East Kootenay Stewardship Committee meeting in Baynes Lake, with the option of remote attendance via Zoom for both. Each morning meeting was followed by a local field tour in the afternoon.
Georgia Peck, Lakes Program Manager with Living Lakes Canada, is the third generation in her family to work in conservation. She always knew she would follow in the footsteps of her ornithologist grandpa and father, who dedicated his career to shorebird conservation. A large part of her job is managing the Foreshore Integrated Management Program and she is brimming with excitement about the recently updated FIMP protocols.
