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NatureBus stopping in Chilliwack, Abbotsford will collect letters calling on PM to stop nature loss

Canada-wide campaign will deliver letters to world leaders at UN biodiversity conference in Montreal
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A heron brings a twig back to its nest at the Great Blue Heron Nature Reserve in Chilliwack on March 18, 2015. The reserve will be the location of one of the stops on the NatureBus tour where letters calling on world leaders to halt and reverse nature loss will be collected. (Jenna Hauck/ Chilliwack Progress file)

A ‘nature bus’ will be stopping in Chilliwack and Abbotsford to collect letters calling on world leaders to halt and reverse nature loss.

The NatureBus will stop at the Great Blue Heron Nature Reserve in Chilliwack and the University of the Fraser Valley in Abbotsford on Nov. 30 as part of a bus tour by Nature Canada.

People are being asked to write letters that bring awareness to protecting biodiversity in their region. The letters will then be delivered to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at NatureCOP, the UN biodiversity conference in Montreal.

“We have joined the NatureBus initiative because protecting biodiversity is essential to maintaining the health of complex ecosystems across the globe,” said Camille Coray, executive director with the Great Blue Heron Nature Reserve. “We are collecting messages from Canadians across the country calling on world leaders attending the conference to act at the NatureCOP to stop nature loss once and for all.”

In Chilliwack, the Great Blue Heron Nature Reserve will be hosting an event and letter-writing campaign for the NatureBus program that will highlight some notable species in the Fraser Valley facing habitat loss and other significant challenges to the health of their populations.

The NatureBus, including staff from Nature Canada, will be attending this event while collecting letters.

The goal is to collect 250 letters in Chilliwack alone by Nov. 30.

People can attend the event and write a letter in person, drop a letter off at the interpretive centre prior to the date, or submit a letter digitally before Nov. 30, to gbhnrs@gmail.com.

“Prior to the event and on the day of, we are calling on individuals to submit their thoughts via letter on why Canada’s nature and species are worth protecting and why we need a solid framework to halt and reverse the loss of biodiversity,” stated the Nature Canada press release.

The event in Chilliwack is Nov. 30 from noon to 3 p.m. at the Great Blue Heron Nature Reserve. The stop in Abbotsford is at UFV on the same day from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.

The NatureBus that will be stopping in the Fraser Valley is one of three buses going from city to city across Canada as part of the campaign. The Pacific bus leaves Vancouver on Nov. 26, the Ontario bus leaves London on Nov. 30, and the Atlantic bus leaves Halifax on Dec. 1.

“The planet is staring down the dual crises of climate change and biodiversity loss,” said Graham Saul, executive director at Nature Canada. “NatureCOP in Montreal could be the moment we turn things around for nature—and Canada unexpectedly finds itself in the driver’s seat.”

NatureCOP (the 15th Conference of the Parties to the U.N. Convention on Biological Diversity) will be held in Montreal from Dec. 7 to 19. With the world’s gaze focused on the city, Canadians have a chance to show just how committed they are to protecting nature.

After delivering the messages to Prime Minister Trudeau at the start of NatureCOP the messages will be displayed at Nature Canada’s installment at the Canada Pavilion.

RELATED: Businesses ally with environmentalists to push B.C.’s new premier to protect biodiversity


 

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Email: jenna.hauck@theprogress.com
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Jenna Hauck

About the Author: Jenna Hauck

I started my career at The Chilliwack Progress in 2000 as a photojournalist.
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