HCTF has recently approved over $650k in funding for 52 conservation stewardship projects in BC. Included in the funding are projects under HCTF’s stewardship grant umbrella: Action, Capacity, and Community Grants. Newly launched Action Grants support projects that directly involve people and communities to change behaviours and/or practices leading to positive and measurable conservation outcomes in British Columbia. Projects include: $50,000 for the 2024 Wetlands Institute, a 7-day workshop providing necessary tools and knowledge for practitioners to initiate wetland stewardship projects ac ..read more

As the threat of invasive mussels gets closer to BC’s borders, HCTF is grateful for the continued federal and provincial support for the Provincial Invasive Mussels Monitoring Program that HCTF administers. This year the Invasive Mussel Monitoring Grant will administer 11 projects for a total of $168,123 in funding. Each project will undertake sampling of several waterbodies throughout the summer months, with the results reported to HCTF and the Province of BC over fall/winter. See below for a map of the lakes and rivers that will be sampled in 2024.   The Invasive Mussels Monitoring Pro ..read more

The Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation is proud to release the 2024-25 approved project list. Over $7.5 million in funding has been awarded to 123 projects that will benefit fish, wildlife, and their habitats across B.C. Included in the list are the approved projects under the Fish & Wildlife Grant, Caribou Habitat Restoration Fund, and Quality Waters program, as well as the provincially-led Conservation Lands and Fisheries O&M programs. 3-251: Interior Fraser Wild Steelhead Conservation Steelhead tagging for spawning population estimate in the Nicola watershed. Projects include ..read more

The Habitat Conservation Trust is pleased to welcome David Hogarth as our new Manager of Biology. David holds a BSc from the University of Victoria. He is a Registered Professional Biologist in BC, and was previously a Professional Biologist in Alberta. David’s background includes working with governments, non-profit and research organizations, and in consulting, with over 10 years of experience working in aquatic, marine, and terrestrial biology. He’s contributed to conservation, responsible resource management, and land stewardship, and helped design and conduct a wide variety of assessments ..read more

The results are in for the 2023 HCTF Photo Contest! This year the contest returned to 3 categories: Wildlife or Freshwater Fish, Landscapes, and Conservation Lands. We received photos from all across our beautiful province, showcasing a broad range of species and habitats. Thank you to everyone who submitted a photo, and congratulations to our winners! Category: Karen Wipond Award (Conservation Lands) More info on Conservation Lands Photographs for the Conservation Lands (Karen Wipond Award) category must have been taken within the boundaries of a provincially administered Conservation La ..read more

Saving Rare Habitats on Galiano Island – Two Major Wins for Environmental Conservation The Galiano Conservancy Association (GCA), an environmental charity founded in 1989 as one of BC’s first community-based land trusts, works to protect, steward and restore Galiano Island ecosystems by creating a network of natural areas where a healthy environment, learning and a love of nature flourish. The recent protection of Quadra Hill, an ecologically significant property on Galiano Island, marks a milestone in the region’s conservation efforts. Key partnerships developed over several years were vital ..read more

Every year HCTF invests millions into fish and wildlife projects to advance conservation in BC. However, that’s not the only way our funds are having an impact. In 2018, HCTF began a process to transition all the funds we had invested in financial markets into Responsible Investing portfolios. Responsible Investing is a practice to incorporate environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors into investment decisions. HCTF currently has over $35 million invested in Responsible Investing portfolios. This includes a number of endowments, as well as funds from short- and medium-term programs wh ..read more

HCTF in partnership with the First Nations-B.C. Wildlife & Habitat Conservation Forum and the Province of British Columbia’s Together for Wildlife Initiative (T4W) are proud to announce the recipients for the 2023 Together for Wildlife academic scholarships; Alexia Constantino, Harry Yiduo Zhang, Jamie Clarke, Jeffrey Naishima-Miller, Julia Bizon, Lindsay Whitehead, Megan Winand, Persia Khan, Tyler Jessen, and Westin Cryke. The Together for Wildlife scholarship is awarded annually to 10 master’s and Ph.D. candidates conducting research that will have a positive impact on stewardship, manag ..read more

The Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation and HCTF Education are pleased to announce this year’s Al Martin Conservation Fellowship recipients: Alessandro Freeman, Oliver Holt, and Zachary Sherker. The Al Martin Conservation Fellowship recognizes Graduate students wishing to pursue a career in fish or wildlife conservation and management in BC. The recipients receive a scholarship of $10,000 to help fund their graduate research. Named for Al Martin, a titan in the conservation community. Al had a long and illustrious career starting back in 1977 as a biologist in Penticton BC. After a decade of ..read more

In 2018 Chu Cho Environmental identified several candidate roadways for restoration within the Chase caribou herd range with input from forest licensees, caribou biologists, and Tsay Keh Dene Nation. In total, Chu Cho Environmental and Tsay Keh Dene Nation have now completed restoration work on 3 roads within the Chase caribou herd boundary since 2019. Collectively, these projects have been a part of the larger Chase Caribou Road Restoration Program (CCRRP), with the Goldway road being the most recent restoration project. Planted Seedling – Chu Cho Environmental LLP Sean Rapai of Chu Cho Env ..read more