This report shares the impact of Kootenay Connect Priority Places. It celebrates the remarkable work of local champions and partners—working together for the place we all call home, now and for the future. Nearly ten years ago, new research envisioned a landscape-level framework for conservation work in the region. Rather than focusing on a single species or ecosystem, a dozen ecological corridors were mapped across the Kootenays.
The Kootenay Connect initiative and KCP’s Kootenay Connect Priority Places (KCPP) were the topic of an article written in the French-language news magazine "La Source"! A friendly challenge between Kootenay biologists Marcy Mahr and Michael Proctor developed into the Kootenay Connect initiative, a conservation framework for a regional network designed to help species move and adapt as ecosystems shift with a changing climate. The vision of connectivity across 12 corridors received support from KCP and many keen partners to help bring it to life and create lasting conservation benefits for the Kootenay region.
Kootenay Conservation Program and the Creston Valley Wildlife Management Area brought together diverse perspectives from the Creston Valley to discuss priority actions for stewardship of local fish and wildlife, and to identify partnerships moving forward. At the Creston Valley Conservation Action Forum Check-in Meeting in February, over 35 biologists and representatives from various local stewardship organizations, First Nations, and other agencies came together to review the progress being made on the five priority actions identified during a previous regional forum hosted in 2020.
Nine conservation projects were recently approved by the Regional District of Central Kootenay (RDCK) to receive funding from the RDCK Local Conservation Fund in 2026. A local government service that creates a dedicated fund for conservation, the RDCK Local Conservation Fund distributes funding to projects in Electoral Areas A, D, E, F and H that are approved by the RDCK Board of Directors each year.
Ten conservation projects were recently approved by the Regional District of East Kootenay (RDEK) to receive funding from the Columbia Valley Local Conservation Fund (CVLCF) in 2026. A local government service that creates a dedicated fund for conservation, the CVLCF distributes funding to projects in the area between Spillimacheen and Canal Flats that are approved by RDEK Directors each year.
Our local Kootenay Connect Priority Places (KCPP) project is the topic of a Canadian Geographic feature article. With funding provided by Environment and Climate Change Canada and substantial matching funds from partner organizations, more than 60 habitat enhancement projects have been delivered in seven of the 12 originally identified corridors. “I don’t know that there’s any other NGO-driven or -managed initiative on this scale that we’ve ever seen in B.C,” says Mahr.
Kootenay Conservation Program (KCP) is a partnership […]
Over 60 people gathered in Fernie on October 3 & 4 for KCP's 2025 Fall Gathering on the theme of "Rivers to Ridges: Fostering Connections for Conservation”.
The application period for Local Conservation Fund projects for 2026 projects is now open! Applications are accepted until October 31, 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.
