By Fred McMechan
The annual Scout Island Nature Centre banquet will be held on Friday evening, April 8 at Saint Andrew’s United Church Hall.
Tickets are available from The Open Book or from members of the Williams Lake Field Naturalists.
There will be two events at the banquet, a presentation by our guest speaker, and the 40th anniversary celebration for The Nature Trust of BC.
Dr. Rob Butler, a well-known BC biologist, will be the guest speaker and Carl MacNaughton, acting land manager for The Nature Trust, will provide a short illustrated presentation on the conservation of lands in B.C. by this organization since 1971.
The title of Dr. Rob Butler’s talk will be Optimism for the Future.
He says: “If there is one heroic deed in your life, let it be to save wild places.”
Dr. Butler explains that although our world is facing some large environmental issues, there is reason for optimism. His talk, illustrated with award-winning photographs, will show the important role B.C. and the Nature Trust will play in the survival and recovery of many large animals. He describes the latest research on how the effects of predators can cascade through ecosystems and why nature is good for your health and your child’s development.
Dr. Rob Butler is an ornithologist with more than 40 years of experience in research and conservation of birds in the Americas and Asia. For many years he was a senior scientist with the Canadian Wildlife Service. He is presently B.C. program’s scientist for Bird Studies Canada, president of the Pacific Wildlife Foundation and an adjunct professor of biological sciences at Simon Fraser University. He has been a director for the Nature Trust since June 2010. He writes widely in the scientific and popular literature on ecology and conservation issues. He wrote two books and more than 120 scientific and popular articles. Recently he has contributed to the launch of Canada’s Important Bird Areas program, the Breeding Bird Atlas in B.C., the Young Naturalists Club of B.C. and the Pacific Wildlife Foundation.
He is a frequent guest on radio and television, and in the print media where he writes a blog, Bird Watch, for the Vancouver Sun.
The Nature Trust of B.C. was formed during B.C.’s centenary in 1971. The principle objective of this land conservancy organization is to purchase lands of ecological significance in our province. It has protected properties throughout B.C. One of the first properties obtained by the Nature Trust was the Scout Island Nature Centre.
It was designated by the Nature Trust as a nature education area for the people of the Cariboo. The presentation by Carl MacNaughton will give people an opportunity to be aware of the conservation of some of these lands and their rich biodiversity over the past 40 years.
The money raised from this banquet will be used to provide nature educational programs at the nature centre for our community, especially for children.
Also, the funds will go toward benefits such as providing services for visitors, including tourists, maintaining the trail system, and protecting or enhancing the variety of habitats.
