Hi! We’re Darian and Ellen, and we’re students in the Ecosystem Management Technician program at Fleming College. This month, we finished up our program with a two-week placement at Couchiching Conservancy. We started our placement right after the huge ice storm, so our initial itinerary changed to allow us …
Conservation Conversations
This column was originally published in Orillia Matters on April 29, 2025 The Couchiching Conservancy protects nature in your area. Preserving green space is one of the best ways to mitigate climate change and as a staff member, I’m interested in how climate change is affecting local businesses. Perhaps because …
A Mother and Daughter for Mother Nature
As published in The Villager Magazine May 1, 2025 Trudy Coughlin has a degree in anatomy and has always loved the outdoors. In the early years of her marriage, she and her husband bought a farm in Kirkland Lake, but found they couldn’t make a living and she eventually began …
Alphabet Soup – What is the CPCAD?
After 9 years working at The Conservancy it feels like things have come full circle. I started here going door-to-door as an Engagement Organizer with Aiesha Aggarwal, our now Conservation Analyst. We were asking the community to support the 17% Pledge. The 17% Pledge supported including land trust nature reserves …
Annual General Meeting Recap
Thank you to those of you who attended the April 13 Annual General Meeting. Even with two postponed dates, about a week’s notice of the rescheduled date, and on a beautiful sunny Sunday, we still had 126 people attend. Thank you. Here are a few highlights of the meeting: Our …
Wild Routes: Minesing to Matchedash Part 1
Written by Biologist, Toby Rowland: Since I first learned about the conservation corridors envisioned by Ron Reid across the Couchiching region, I’ve wondered how wildlife could actually move through these areas. These corridors connect protected lands, such as nature reserves, provincial parks, and crown lands, with private lands that still …
How Does The Ice Storm Affect Nature?
In the wake of the intense ice storm our region recently endured, it’s clear that damage is extensive. The last time Canada experienced a similar event was 27 years ago when the 1998 Montreal Ice Storm caused devastation. Many of our communities will never look the same after this year’s …
Conservation Conversations: Maple Syrup Version
The following article was published in Orillia Matters on April 3, 2025 Thirty years ago, tired of 80 hour work weeks, Peter Lorriman moved his young family from London, Ontario to a sugar bush in Simcoe County. Peter laughs and says he now works 120 hours a week. Though he …
New Date….Annual General Meeting
April 8 2025 update: The Couchiching Conservancy’s Annual General Meeting has been rescheduled for Sunday April 13th from 2-4pm with doors opening at 1pm at Hawk Ridge Golf Club in Severn. Thank you for your patience as we waited for power and a date that worked for as many as …
People Value Connection
This article was published in The Villager Magazine April 1st, 2025 Tuesday started with snacks. In place of our regular staff meeting, The Couchiching Conservancy was doing professional development training. We’re fortunate to have hundreds of volunteers and this leadership seminar was to make sure we’re having as big an …