The Canadian Wildlife Federation (CWF) is bringing its WILD Outside program to Orillia.
The no-cost, barrier-free, conservation program is operated in 17 cities across Canada and is designed to get youth aged 15-18 outside and connected to nature. At the same time, the program hopes to inspire youth to develop and deliver community programs.
“The whole idea of it is to encourage young people to foster a conservation ethic in connection to nature,” says CWF marketing manager, Samantha Mills. “It’s the first step in developing a strong love and connection for the environment and nature.”
The program encourages participants to volunteer 120 hours or more toward fun, outdoor activities like bird watching, canoeing, cross-country skiing, hiking, and conservation projects such as park clean-ups, endangered species removal, and bird and bat box building.
The newest branch of the program, called WILD Outside Remote, is designed to bring the benefits of WILD Outside anywhere in Canada. Orillia is one of the first cities in which WILD Outside Remote is scheduled to be launched this year and the CWF is now accepting registrations.
Some adult volunteer team leaders and participants already participated in the first WILD Outside Remote event; a shoreline clean-up event on Earth Day at Tudhope Park.
The event was held in honour of Angela Rehhorn, who worked with the Couchiching Conservancy as a participant in the Canadian Wildlife Federation’s Canadian Conservation Corps (CCC).
Rehhorn was killed in a 2019 Ethiopia Airlines crash that killed all 157 people on board. At the time of her death, Rehhorn had been volunteering to do species surveys and was developing a citizen project on bat conservation.
“We thought Orillia was a great location to start this program off,” Mills said. “It’s in a great area, it’s where Angela’s family is, and it’s where she grew up.”
To sign up for the WILD Outside program, click here. If a not-for-profit organization is interested in hosting a WILD Outside event, they should send an email to [email protected]
