Nature and Biodiversity

Canadian nature lovers have crowdfunded millions to protect an area of pristine wilderness

A pattern in a mountainside forest left by a controlled forest fire in Yoho National Park in British Columbia.  An unusual pattern left by forest fire is seen on the side of a mountain in Yoho National Park in British Columbia west of the Alberta border August 8, 2005. The fire was a controlled burn of forest areas infested with the mountain pine beetle. The pine beetle epidemic has killed millions of trees and affected some seven million hectares of forest in the province. Forestry officials have used controlled burns to kill the beetle and prevent the insect from spreading further. REUTERS/Andy Clark - RP6DRMRKVTAC

Canada has one of the lowest rates of deforestation in the world. Image: REUTERS/Andy Clark

Canadians are well-known for being nature lovers. Now, they’ve crowdfunded enough money to create a new protected park on the country’s unspoiled west coast.

Have you read?

The BC Parks Foundation launched a campaign in June 2019 to protect 2,000 acres of the Princess Louisa Inlet on British Columbia’s Sunshine Coast, reaching its $2.3 million target within a matter of months, thanks to multiple small donations.

The inlet lies 69 miles from Vancouver, and is only accessible by boat. It is marked by sheer granite cliffs and is home to the renowned Chatterbox Falls, along with grizzly bears, eagles, mountain goats and marine life.

Princess Louisa Inlet, 69 miles from Vancouver, is only accessible by boat. Image: BC Parks Foundation

Forests for the future

In 1965, the head of the inlet and part of its northwest side became the Princess Louisa Marine Park – a conservation area managed by the provincial government of British Columbia with support from a local charity.

But the southern part of the park remained unprotected. And with offers from forestry companies to purchase the land from a private seller, the BC Parks Foundation took steps to ensure it was safe from deforestation and development.

Canada has one of the lowest rates of deforestation in the world. Its 348 million hectares of forest lands represent about 9% of the world’s forest cover, but account for only 0.3% of global deforestation.

Discover

What’s the World Economic Forum doing about deforestation?

The renowned spot is now set to become a protected park. Image: Wikimedia Commons/Klaus Johannson

From small beginnings come great things

In 2016, a similar crowdfunding campaign led to nearly 40,000 people donating almost $1.7m in just three weeks to buy Awaroa Beach in the Abel Tasman National Park, on New Zealand’s South Island. With help from the New Zealand government, the beach was purchased for public use.

The funds raised for Princess Louisa Inlet will allow BC Parks Foundation to purchase three miles of waterfront and 2,000 acres of pristine watershed land. It plans to transfer the property to the government of British Columbia for transformation into a provincial park.

BC Parks Foundation CEO Andrew Day says this will be one of the first crowdfunded protected parks in Canada.

"It's just an amazing, amazing thing that people have done," he told CBC News. “It was so many people who gave us $10 or $15 and said, 'This is all I can do, but this is a wonderful thing that you're doing.'"

Don't miss any update on this topic

Create a free account and access your personalized content collection with our latest publications and analyses.

Sign up for free

License and Republishing

World Economic Forum articles may be republished in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Public License, and in accordance with our Terms of Use.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum.

Stay up to date:

Canada

Related topics:
Nature and BiodiversitySustainable Development
Share:
The Big Picture
Explore and monitor how Canada is affecting economies, industries and global issues
A hand holding a looking glass by a lake
Crowdsource Innovation
Get involved with our crowdsourced digital platform to deliver impact at scale
World Economic Forum logo
Global Agenda

The Agenda Weekly

A weekly update of the most important issues driving the global agenda

Subscribe today

You can unsubscribe at any time using the link in our emails. For more details, review our privacy policy.

How the Himalayas are being restored through participatory forest management

Aditi Mishra and Ar. Sachin Uniyal

October 31, 2024

Biodiversity declining even faster in 'protected areas', and other nature and climate stories you need to read this week

About us

Engage with us

  • Sign in
  • Partner with us
  • Become a member
  • Sign up for our press releases
  • Subscribe to our newsletters
  • Contact us

Quick links

Language editions

Privacy Policy & Terms of Service

Sitemap

© 2024 World Economic Forum