Snow, ice and permafrost — defining characteristics of the Arctic — are vanishing at an alarming rate. Sea ice and glaciers are melting, snow cover is thinning, and the water table is changing. As Helena Gonzales Lindberg and Grete K. Hovelsrud explain, many of the impacts of the climate crisis in the cryosphere will be irreversible if we overshoot the 1.5°C Paris Agreement goal.   In the Arctic, cryosphere changes are driven primarily by warmer air and ocean temperatures. Less snow and ice in the winter and more warm days in the summer may not seem like critical concerns in a regio ..read more

Monitoring carbon in nature allows us to understand the effects that protecting, managing and restoring habitats (known as nature-based climate solutions, or NbCS) have on reducing carbon in the atmosphere. Current approaches are costly, unreliable, and time- and labour-intensive, so WWF-Canada’s Nature x Carbon Tech Challenge sought out more cost-effective and user-friendly carbon-measurement technologies.  Laval University’s Digital Forest Lab was one of three $100,000-award recipients, so we spoke to associate professor Martin Béland about his team’s tech and what winning the cha ..read more

Nature sequesters and stores carbon in its plants and soils, so we know that protecting, managing and restoring these natural habitats helps us fight climate change. But it hasn’t always been easy to measure how much carbon is being captured by nature over time so that we can prioritize the most effective actions in the most impactful places. Ontario marshland © Shutterstock Approaches to date have been costly, labour and time intensive, or have delivered incomplete data. That’s why WWF-Canada’s Nature x Carbon Tech Challenge granted three $100,000 awards for the most cost-effective, inn ..read more

We know that protecting, managing and restoring habitats (also referred to as Nature-based climate solutions, or NbCS) can help us fight climate change by reducing carbon in the atmosphere. But until we can measure how much carbon is captured by nature over time, we don’t know which conservation efforts to invest in or prioritize — and where to take these actions — to deliver the biggest benefit to the climate. Great Bear Rainforest, BC © WWF-Canada A variety of approaches for carbon measurement already exist, but they often deliver incomplete data and are costly and/or labour and time intens ..read more

Grasslands are a stealth hero in Canada’s efforts to take on the dual crises of climate change and biodiversity loss. The native grasses and wildflowers of native prairie and savannah ecosystems have deep, sturdy root structures, which capture and store carbon from the air, stimulate the growth of valuable fungi and bacteria in the soil, and make the ground they grow in more absorbent of floodwater and heavy rains. These traits also make these grasslands highly drought-resilient — once established, they require less watering than most other plants, and tend to thrive in hotter urban environme ..read more

Who doesn’t love the lively scent of mint? Or the bright, citrusy perfume of a lemon plucked fresh from the tree? Asian elephants, actually — and that’s a good thing.  In Nepal’s Terai Arc Landscape — a region known for its rich ecological diversity as well as for being home to endangered species like tigers, rhinos, snow leopards and elephants — there’s an ongoing conversation about how to balance the need for human livelihoods with the urgency of protecting habitat for at-risk species.   An elephant roaming the Khata biological corridor at night, Nepal. © Emmanuel Rondeau / W ..read more

Depending on your point of view, the “No Mow May” message shared by some nature advocates could sound like a simple way to help wildlife, a welcome excuse to put off chores for a few more weeks, or a first step down the road to anarchy. Knowing that your neighbours may differ in their attitudes can make it hard to judge whether to participate. Shutterstock From the perspective of helping spring pollinators, skipping May mowing is not a bad idea. It lets some flowers spring up among the turfgrass, providing an early-season source of nectar. This is great for “generalist” insects that aren’t to ..read more

Our 32nd annual WWF Climb for Nature on April 21 and 22 was a wild success. More than 5,500 climbers conquered the CN Tower and our record books as they raised $1.53 million for conservation across the country. Megan Leslie at the CN Tower Climb finish line © Kevin Raposo / WWF Canada) Moments after climbing the 1,776 steps herself, we spoke to WWF-Canada’s president and CEO, Megan Leslie, on CN Tower’s observation deck about the historic event and how this year’s Climb for Nature is bigger in more ways than one. First off, how was your climb? I did it! Every year, I get to the bottom of ..read more

Have you heard? WWF’s Climb for Nature is coming to the west coast for the first time ever on May 26! The BC Lions’ mascot Leo the Lion welcomed the WWF panda to the iconic BC Place stadium on Earth Day with a friendly stair climb competition. WWF’s panda mascot races the BC Lions’ mascot Leo at BC Place © WWF-Canada And while pandas are excellent climbers, Leo had the home turf advantage. Plus, according to our conservation scientists, lions are faster than pandas. But don’t worry, we’re training for the big climb! And we’re calling on adventurers and nature lovers of all ages to step up for ..read more

More than 5,500 people woke up early on April 21st and 22nd to make the journey up (and up and up) the CN Tower’s 1,776 steps for WWF’s annual Climb for Nature. Together — with support from more than 26,000 donors, sponsors and volunteers — climbers raised a record-breaking $1.53 million for our conservation efforts! “This is the most funds raised in the CN Tower Climb for Nature’s 32-year history, which is a testament to how deeply people care about nature and wildlife,” said Megan Leslie, WWF-Canada’s president and CEO. Tyler Kruschenskeof Brantford, Ont. reaching the top of the CN Tow ..read more