What Does It Really Take to Protect Nature? Lessons from Canada's Conservation Champions
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What does it really take to protect the natural world? At the Canadian Wildlife Federation's inaugural True North Wildlife Conservation Awards in Ottawa, I was reminded that conservation goes far beyond saving endangered species. From Indigenous-led stewardship and outdoor education to fungal research and environmental journalism, these remarkable Canadians are helping protect the ecosystems we all depend on. Here's what the evening taught me about biodiversity, human health and our responsibility to future generations.
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10 ways to enjoy nature any time of the year.
Take a clipping of a plant or use a picture and challenge members of your household to draw the flower. You might notice little details including the veins in the leaf or the shape of the stem. Did you know that members of the mint family (Laminacea) have square stems?
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MMLT Film Prescribes Nature as Cure-All
Explore how the MMLT short film Nature’s Path to Wellness connects nature with mental health, healthy aging, childhood wellbeing and human connection. The article covers the film’s February 2026 premiere, its landscapes across three Mississippi Madawaska Land Trust properties, and the post-screening conversation featuring Dr. Owen Wiseman and other nature-health contributors.
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Canadian Museum of Nature embraces prescription program for mental health
Wiseman emphasized the benefits of nature therapy and said the museum is “a powerful situation” for everybody, including those with limited access to the outdoors.
“Even the power of hearing bird sounds and hearing nature sounds — we know it can drop your cortisol levels, we know it can reduce your stress, so when people walk through the museum and they hear those noises, they are getting those active benefits without having to step onto a dirt floor,” he said.
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Reconnecting at the End: The Healing Power of Nature in Hospice and Palliative Care
When I think about comfort at the end of life, I picture difficult moments buffered by a sense of softness. Small moments that remind us that we’re part of something bigger. One of the most profound sources of comfort is nature. The feeling of sunlight warming our skin, the sound of birds outside a window, or that first breath of fresh air. In hospice and palliative care, every moment is important, and these connections to the world around us offer something no medicine or machine can.
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Beyond Access: Why Outdoor Play Needs Healthier Nature, Not Just More Space
This article explores why outdoor play should be treated as a public health, environmental equity, and planning priority. It also considers how emerging nature-exposure technologies can help identify underserved neighbourhoods, measure environmental quality, and guide investments in healthier, safer, and more climate-resilient places for children to play.
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From Parks to Prevention: Positioning Nature as Core Public Health Infrastructure in Canada’s Next Budget Cycle
While parks and recreation have traditionally been viewed as community amenities, a growing body of evidence suggests they function as critical public health infrastructure.
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Quantifying The Impact: How Urban Planning Shapes Public Health Through Nature Exposure
I see the impacts of your decisions in the blood pressure of a single parent walking their kid to school through a treeless neighbourhood, or in the respiratory flares of a senior living in a heat island with no canopy coverage.
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Reviving wellness through nature: A youth’s journey to recovery
In today’s rapidly digitizing world, our youths’ lives are increasingly dominated by screens. As of the time of writing this article, we are observing a concerning upward trend in nearsightedness (myopia) rates, alongside growing awareness that screen time for children under the age of two can result in atypical sensory processing.
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