President’s Message

By CHERYL BOZARTH SOLL

As we transition into another exciting season, I am honoured to step into the role of President of Nature Alberta. I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to our outgoing President, Kim MacKenzie, for her commitment to the organization over the past several years. Nature Alberta has long been a cornerstone of nature appreciation, ecological education, environmental stewardship, and conservation advocacy in our province. I look forward to both the challenges and the opportunities that lie ahead.

On that note, I would like to take a moment to reflect on our ongoing commitment to conservation and advocacy for Alberta’s wildlife. I am proud of the strides we made towards raising awareness about the challenges facing Alberta’s grizzly bears. These iconic creatures are a listed “Threatened” species, and recovery efforts have been decades in the making. When the Wildlife Regulation Act was changed by ministerial order, effectively reinstating a grizzly bear hunt, Nature Alberta strongly opposed. It is our firm position that policy affecting wildlife populations must rely on sound scientific data, expert advice, and transparent consultation.

Thank you to everyone who wrote letters or expressed your concerns about Alberta’s grizzlies. Your voices matter. But we still have a long way to go. Please stay up to date and engaged on this issue by visiting naturealberta.ca/grizzly-hunt-action.

On page 4, Richard Schneider looks at the recent change to Alberta’s trapping regulations, which now allow the unrestricted harvest of at-risk wolverines and other furbearer species. Another unsustainable policy change with respect to wildlife conservation, part of a string of recent policy changes that don’t take into account the cumulative pressures wildlife face from human activity, habitat loss, and the impacts of climate change. We need to do better to support and sustain biodiversity in our province.

I look forward to moving into the future together with you, united in our mission to protect and promote Alberta’s natural heritage.

—Cheryl Bozarth Soll