On behalf of the entire team at the Cumberland Community Forest Society we want to express our gratitude for your support for our land and water protection and stewardship work in 2022.
This past year has been another eventful one for our organization as we worked toward our 5th major land acquisition of privately owned forest lands surrounding Cumberland. Learn more about this project HERE
On December 21st we quietly and officially completed the purchase of the Lower Perseverance Creek corridor, a 44-acre corridor of beautiful forest and creek that connects the existing Cumberland Forest to protected lands at Comox Lake. We achieved this just 2 years and 2 months after we closed Project Perseverance. This brings our total protected lands to date to 545 acres…and we’re not done yet!
We continue to work with our community partners to identify lands in the Perseverance and Trent Watersheds for protection in support of ecosystem health, drinking water security, and community climate resilience.
This year was also filled with stewardship activities including the Perseverance Streamkeepers (over 6000 salmonids rescued during low flow in Perseverance Creek), the Western Toad Initiative (supporting the migration of this species of conservation concern) and the Cumberland Bat Project (roost counting as part of the BC Community Bat Program annual BC Bat Count). We also produced the Earth Week Festival and the 3rd Annual Fungus Fest which engaged hundreds of residents in a celebration of the diverse species and ecosystems that surround our community.
In the year ahead we look forward to continuing to connect our community to the stewardship of the forests, creeks and wetlands surrounding us, and to also explore how we can support ecosystem health and build climate resilience in our own backyards.
This past year we worked closely with the Village of Cumberland and local schools, teachers, and program leaders to explore ways to support the health and resilience of the Cumberland Community Forest Park. This includes building community knowledge about the history and values of these protected lands and nurturing stewardship culture with kids in the Cumberland Forest. We’re learning about human impacts, biodiversity, sharing the trails with each other, and sharing the forest with nature. We look forward to continuing this work in 2023.
We are also grateful for the valuable partnerships we have with community sporting events like The Cumby, The Perseverance Trail Run, Mind Over Mountain Adventure Race, Dodge City X, StokeFest and others! Look out for the Devils Ladder Ultra happening next year on July 29th!
Please visit our Forest Supporters Page to learn about the generous donors and funders who support our work and our Events Page for upcoming events in support of our work.
If charitable giving is part of your end of year practice, we hope you will consider us. Donation links can be found HERE
As 2022 draws to a close we hope you find time for connection with friends and family and space for quiet reflection in nature. Thank you for being part of our conservation community!