© Victor Daggberg / WWF-Canada Image of water and shore

Our Impact

For more than 50 years, World Wildlife Fund Canada has worked to protect wild places and help the species that live in them.

50 Years of Conservation In Canada

The conservation challenges we face are not small. But, for the past 50 years, countless caring Canadians have helped us protect wild places and the species that live in them. Together, we will continue our work toward a future in which both humans and nature can thrive for generations to come.

Some of Our Successes to Date:

© J. D. Taylor / WWF-Canada Great blue heron in wetland, Canada.

WATERSHED REPORTS

Completed the first-ever national assessment of the health of Canada’s freshwater ecosystems and the threats they face.

© naturepl.com / Eric Baccega / WWF Narwhal crossing tusks above water surface. Baffin Island, Nunavut, Canada

TALLURUTIUP IMANGA

Tallurutiup Imanga (Lancaster Sound) gained protection through Parks Canada with a vastly expanded boundary. It wouldn’t have been possible had Shell Canada not voluntarily relinquished permits after a lawsuit launched by WWF.

© Darren Labiuk Bald eagle in British Columbia, Canada.

PESTICIDE REGULATIONS

A Supreme Court of Canada victory confirmed the rights of municipalities to regulate the non-agricultural use of pesticides.

© Tim Irvin / WWF-Canada A canoeist paddling the Coulonge River in the boreal forest in Quebec, Canada

FOREST STEWARDSHIP

Founded the Forest Stewardship Council, which led to more than 20 years of work with Canadian forestry companies and the certification of more than 60 million hectares of sustainable forest management in Canada. This is more than any other country in the world.

© Natalie Bowes / WWF-Canada A Kermode bear walking across a river in the Great Bear Rainforest, British Columbia

GREAT BEAR RAINFOREST AND SEA

Helped to secure protection of British Columbia’s Great Bear Rainforest and coastal sea, which included the cancellation of the Northern Gateway Pipelines project.

© PCCS PCCS-NOAA permit 633-1763 / WWF-Canada Two Northern right whales.

BAY OF FUNDY

Helped to persuade the International Maritime Organization to change locations of shipping lanes in the Bay of Fundy to avoid collisions with endangered North Atlantic right whales, reducing deaths by more than 80 per cent.

© naturepl.com Shattil & Rozinski / WWF Two black-footed ferrets

ENDANGERED SPECIES RECOVERY FUND

Established the Endangered Species Recovery Fund (ESRF) in partnership with Environment Canada to help Canada’s wildlife thrive. The ESRF supported high-priority conservation projects to assist in the recovery and protection of endangered Canadian wildlife and their natural habitats.

© Jeremiah Armstrong / WWF-Canada A-group-spells-out-Earth-Hour-with-sparklers-against-the-dark-sky.

EARTH HOUR IN CANADA

Initiated Earth Hour in Canada, getting millions of Canadians involved and generating grassroots support for action on climate change.

© Jeremy HARRISON / WWF Canada CARIBOU CALVING AREAS - Herd of barren-ground Caribou at Back River

CARIBOU CALVING AREAS

Persuaded De Beers Group Canada to keep mining away from all caribou calving areas in Nunavut and the Northwest Territories.

© Hal WHITEHEAD / WWF-Canada A group of three Northern bottlenose whales

ATLANTIC CANADA GULLY

Helped to ensure The Gully, home to the endangered northern bottlenose whale, became Atlantic Canada’s first marine protected area.

© J. D. Taylor WWF-Canada Forest and rocky shoreline of the bay of Fundy, New Brunswick.

ENDANGERED SPACES CAMPAIGN

More than 1,000 new parks and other protected areas across Canada were established through WWF-Canada’s Endangered Spaces campaign.

© Reinaldo Estrada WWF-Netherlands A school of snapers swims in Jardines de la Reina National Park, Cuba.

JEWEL OF CUBA

With the support of WWF, the Jardines de la Reina, a stunning region in Cuba, was declared a national park. This largely untouched area contains one of the Caribbean’s best-preserved coral reefs and is a crucial nesting site for the critically endangered hawksbill turtle.

© Staffan Widstrand / WWF Aerial view of the Taiga River, Northwest Territories

LEGAL ACTION

Filed for judicial review of the environmental assessment of the first diamond mine in Canada in Federal Court and settled out of court in return for a commitment to establish the NWT Protected Areas Strategy, leading to more than 20 million hectares protected within five years.

© Andrew S. Wright / WWF Canada A kelp bed near Hot Spring Island, Haida Gwaii, British Columbia, Canada

HAIDA GWAII SEABEDS

Helped to persuade four oil and gas companies (Shell, Chevron, Petro-Canada and Imperial) to relinquish leases to the seabed around Haida Gwaii, leading to the protection of this outstanding marine area off the coast of British Columbia.

© WWF-Canada / Gerald Butts Sea Lions relaxing on rocks in British Columbia, Canada

CLAYOQUOT SOUND

Helped to protect Clayoquot Sound, British Columbia by commissioning a study that definitively documented the scientific importance of the area. WWF rewarded the government announcement by recognizing it as a Gift to the Earth, our highest international honour.