This year has been an impactful and exciting one for our volunteer Guardian program. Many new Guardians joined a steadfast and committed group of existing volunteers, who continue to be of invaluable support to us.
Coastal Guardians increased the number of piping plover surveys they performed this year, with 91 beach surveys (up from 65 last year), which resulted in 142 monitoring hours. The insight of these Guardians made it possible to keep track of the ever-changing conditions of nests and chicks.
Coastal Guardians monitoring bank swallow surveyed 25 routes, totaling 40 kilometres of coastline, resulting in 72 hours surveying for colonies.
We hosted 7 Conservation Guardian training sessions in 2025, with a total of 70 people who learned how to monitor Natural Areas with the Landscape Conservation app and other methods. Between April and October, there were 106 Conservation Guardian visits to Natural Areas, and a total of 115 hours of site visits alone (not including prep work, driving time, and other volunteering events). During those monitoring visits, volunteers found numerous human impacts that we have since been able to address and remedy, in addition to a wealth of biological information. We are grateful for the support of so many talented and generous people.
We’re grateful to the new and returning Guardians who took part in the Conservation and Coastal programs this year. As always, the level of experience, enthusiasm, and diverse perspectives of the volunteers continues to blow us away.
Written by: Katherine McEwen Engagement Technician
