Environment committee  There is something called the state of Canada's environment report, which was done by Environment Canada in collaboration with the provincial and territorial governments. It basically shows that all of the major ecosystem types in Canada have significant problems. We have a level

Environment committee  I guess I would say that the model of the three-legged stool is a bit of a simplistic model because, while all of those elements are important in a solution, we have to put nature first as a solution. I think that's the key to sustainability. If we don't put nature first, then we

Environment committee  Yes. In Canada, we're very fortunate to have a lot of good data on our biodiversity. We have conservation data centres in every province and two of the territories. IUCN has just completed a new guidance on key biodiversity areas, in fact, and we already have a number of them ide

Environment committee  Yes. I am sitting right now in the Czech Republic in a category 5 protected area where traditional agriculture is part of the zoning of the park I am in. It has done really well. Nature is always the first priority, but there are always solutions found to incorporate human use of

Environment committee  I think it's fascinating that you bring that up. I tried to bring that up in my discussion at the end on landscape conservation initiatives that are being developed in the United States. They put federal funding on the table and allowed groups to self-organize around ecological u

Environment committee  That was a clause that was added to target 11 at I think three o'clock in the morning, and the purpose was especially to ensure that indigenous and community conserved areas—remember, this is a global approach—could also be counted, even though governments didn't want to count th

Environment committee  I think it's important that we do consider these other areas, but they won't be a major part of the solution.

Environment committee  In my view, I think the role is a convening one, because there are so many players, many of which we've heard from today, that have to be part of this. An example from South Africa is important. They did a national systematic conservation planning exercise. They brought together

Environment committee  I think the short answer is yes, absolutely. What we're talking about is conservation systems, which include protected areas, working landscapes, and measures for connectivity. It really involves all parties sitting down and working this out through something called “systematic

Environment committee  Okay. Then I want to focus on some solutions. There are solutions available for systematic conservation planning. Probably the most applicable one for us is called Large Landscape Cooperatives. This is a program developed in the United States. It allows organizations that should

Environment committee  Thank you very much. Thank you for the opportunity to present to the committee today. I hope the technology holds. First, let me introduce myself. I've worked in the protected area world for well over 30 years as a scientist, as a manager for Parks Canada, and as a university r