Summer 2014

Newsletter Archive

Co-existing with Beavers: Workshop Series a Success

As part of our Leave It To Beavers partnership project, Miistakis worked with Cows and Fish and the Ann and Sandy Cross Conservation Area to deliver a workshop series to engage land owners/managers and policy makers in learning more about how to manage beavers for watershed management. The Alberta Ecotrust Foundation generously supported this project.

Cows and Fish developed the workshop content and designed it to be replicable so that others may host the workshop. We hosted two workshops on beaver co-existence this past spring. These workshops took place on May 15 at Red Deer Lake Community Centre and May 29 at the Priddis Community Centre. We had 60 participants attend the workshops and at least two media stories (one in FFWD magazine and one in The Western Producer) stemmed from the workshop. Also, we have received numerous requests for additional workshop offerings. There will be two workshops hosted in the Sturgeon River Watershed (Sturgeon and Lac St. Anne Counties) this fall. We are hoping to secure additional funds to customize the workshop content for Alberta's three eco-regions.

Finally, through the Adaptive Management Initiative, we are working with Cows and Fish and the Clark Fork Coalition to tailor the workshop content to create a workshop on the use of beavers for climate change adaptation in the Crown of the Continent. This workshop will be held in Butte, MT on October 15. If you are interested in attending this workshop, please contact Ellie.