Between now and the spring of 2018, Cornwall, Ontario’s St. Lawrence River Institute of Environmental Sciences will be working in National Wildlife Areas across Canada to link the outdoor recreational pursuit of geocaching with environmental education as a means of connecting Canadians with the natural world.
A world-wide activity that people of all ages enjoy, geocaching is a real-world, outdoor treasure hunting pursuit that uses a Global Positioning System (GPS) or a mobile device to hide and seek containers, called "geocaches" or "caches."
Participants navigate to a specific set of GPS coordinates and then attempt to find the geocache hidden at that location. Inside a geocache container is a log sheet and other items (treasures) that are left for the next person to find. Today, more than 500,000 geocaches are registered on various websites devoted to the pastime and are located in more than 100 countries on all seven continents around the world, including Antarctica. For more information, visit www.geocaching.com.
Environment and Climate Change Canada awarded the $167,000 contract to the River Institute with the specific goal of “Connecting Canadians to Nature.” The project will use geocaching to educate and inform the public about the efforts made to protect and conserve Canada’s ecological heritage by means of the Canadian Wildlife Service’s network of protected areas.
Geocaching routes will encourage visitors to explore National Wildlife Areas and learn more about the ecology, wildlife, and other unique features of each region. The plan involves highlighting eight of Canada’s National Wildlife Areas, including: Alaksen and Vaseux-Bighorn in British Columbia; Last Mountain Lake in Saskatchewan; Big Creek and Prince Edward Point in Ontario; Cape Jourimain and Shepody in New Brunswick; and Chignecto in Nova Scotia. There are 54 National Wildlife Areas across Canada that contain significant habitats for animals or plants. The designated areas protect about 1 million hectares of habitat, including substantial marine habitat.
“This work with (Environment and Climate Change Canada) takes the River Institute nationwide,” said Dr. Jeff Ridal, the institute’s executive director at the River Institute. “We look forward to sharing the message of conservation and species protection along the way.”
Cristina Charette, the project’s coordinator, added, “Now that we have visited all of these National Wildlife Areas for the first time we are excited to begin work on phase 1 of this project. We are planning to complete the project by the end of March 2018 and have families, schools and geocachers discover these unique sites in years to come.’’
The River Institute’s expertise in ecology, environmental education, and Geographic Information System (GIS) mapping ensures that the geocaching routes and activities being planned are not only educational but fun for everyone.
Communications/community outreach officer for the St. Lawrence Institute of Environment Sciences.