A program that provides opportunities for youth and families throughout B.C. – including in Surrey, Langley and White Rock – to get outdoors and learn about nature has received a boost from the Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation.
The $37,977 grant to NatureKids BC, announced last month, was among 170 doled out by the foundation this year for B.C. conservation projects, a news release states.
The foundation has been “a core funder” of the volunteer-led NatureKids network for more than a decade, the release notes.
It’s anticipated that over the next year, more than 1,500 youth and their families will participate in NatureKids BC programs, in activities ranging from maintaining nest boxes and creating interpretive signage, to bird counts and “citizen science” projects such as a bat education and advocacy project that was added to the mix this year.
The NatureKids Nicomekl club serves families in Surrey, White Rock, Langley and Delta, hosting monthly outdoor ‘Explorer Days’ to share information about native wildlife and plants, and connect families who enjoy being outdoors and learning about nature.
Membership is $35 per year per family, and includes a nature-themed welcome pack for kids aged five to 12 years old and four issues of the organizations NatureWILD magazine.
For more information, email nicomekl@naturekidsbc.ca
Other grants awarded this year by HCTF to local conservation efforts include $28,740 to A Rocha Canada for habitat restoration in “critical areas” of the Little Campbell River watershed.