Today, February 11, 2025, is the tenth annual United Nations International Day of Women and Girls in Science.
About three quarters of the staff at the B.C. Wildlife Federation are women, all of whom work hard to restore habitat, protect watersheds, advocate for fish and wildlife conservation, and enhance conservation awareness across the province.
The BCWF is home to a variety of programs that provide education, training, and outdoor opportunities for women and girls interested in conservation science.
- Our Women’s Outdoors Program engaged with 285 participants in 2024, at workshops and weekend events designed to help women learn the skills to navigate the great outdoors with confidence! We are currently looking forward to our next weekend in Lake Cowichan!
- Our Wetlands Education Program provides free training to equip communities with the knowledge and tools necessary to steward their local wetlands. Over 60% of program participants in 2024 were women!
- Our Youth Programs team provided a wide range of outdoor education experiences across the province, including class workshops for 171 students, day camps for 153 participants aged 8-14, an overnight camp for 12 participants aged 12-16, and scholarships for 2 young conservationists. The Youth Programs team also ran 12 basic archery instructor courses for educators, to help further promote archery as an all-inclusive sport. All experiences sought to break down barriers towards accessing outdoor spaces and sports for people of all genders and backgrounds.
With the support of BCWF members, generous funders, and partnerships with First Nations, Indigenous groups, non-profits, and local businesses, women at BCWF are conservation leaders.
The BCWF is also co-sponsoring the 3rd Annual Advancing Women in Conservation Summit, taking place April 4-6, 2025 in Richmond, B.C. This conference is an opportunity for women in all fields of conservation to network and develop leadership skills. We are looking forward to engaging with women in conservation from across Canada and celebrating their unique contributions to the community.
A big shoutout to the women on our team for their dedication to conservation science, advocacy, education, and habitat restoration!
BCWF staff on what it means to pursue a career in a science-related field:
Lisa Stephens Women’s Program Coordinator
“From being outside during childhood camping, to studying biology in university, to exploring with my own kids, science has always been a huge part of my life. I always say I’m a naturalist at heart. Nothing makes me happier than being outside and exploring with other people who feel the same way. I see the same joy in women trying something new as part of my role as the Women’s Program Coordinator. The goal of the program is to empower and connect women with nature and build a supportive, like-minded community in the process. Hopefully by making the outdoors accessible to more women, they will learn to love the natural world like I do.”
Geneva Bahen, Beaver-Based Restoration Assistant
“I’ve always had a strong connection to the outdoors and a curiosity about our natural world—what could be more important than that? I studied environmental science because I wanted to understand the ‘behind-the-scenes’ of nature, but it also opened my eyes to how humans have impacted ecosystems. With climate change being such a pressing issue, I believe we need to work in tandem with nature, implement nature-based solutions and restore degraded systems for the benefit of everyone. Working in beaver-based restoration has been especially inspiring and empowering—it’s amazing to see how nature-based solutions can rebuild habitats and improve watershed resilience.
Working in the field is boots-on-the-ground impact. It’s engaging, hands-on, thought-provoking, challenging, messy, and incredibly rewarding, especially when I see ecosystems start to bounce back because of the work our team has done.”
Jennifer Hansen, Marketing and Communications Coordinator
“I was inspired by my teachers to use my skills to help build a better world, and I’ve been lucky enough to find a niche where I could embrace both my passion for science and my love of art and writing to create pieces that advocate for wildlife and educate the public. I am proud to be a scientist, and I’m incredibly proud to watch my two little girls being inspired by the incredible habitat restoration and advocacy work being done by the B.C. Wildlife Federation. The older one even wants to be a scientist when she grows up. That better world we’re building? We’re building it for them.
Katie Blokker, Fish Restoration and Education Program Coordinator
“I was lucky to have parents and other adult mentors during my youth who inspired in me a profound respect and fascination for biological systems. Additionally, I had incredible high school teachers who took the time to understand my unique learning style and nurtured my curiosity and passion for biology.
Working in the field means getting to interact with and directly observe the systems that I have researched and studied. It connects the dots between theoretical knowledge and real-life applications. It allows a hands-on approach that is both incredibly gratifying and humbling.”
Alana Higginson, Wetlands Education Program Coordinator
“Follow what you’re interested in, even if other people think it’s nerdy or weird. In high school my friends would tease me about being a nerd because I would take all the science classes offered instead of an extra free block or yearbook. Doing this led me to a career in STEM where I’m constantly learning and growing, and that I genuinely enjoy. Finding a field that you’re passionate about is so important because work takes up a big portion of your life, so don’t let other people’s opinions steer you away from what you’re interested in.
I was raised in a community where I spent the majority of my free time playing outside in creeks, forests, and lakes. In school, I always loved science and learning about the world around me, especially when it related to the places where I liked to spend time.”
Jennifer Rogers, BCWF Beaver Based Restoration Lead
“Our Conservation Stewardship Team consists primarily of young women, and it has been truly inspiring to work alongside such intelligent, motivated, and compassionate individuals. Fieldwork can be demanding, so having a dependable team is crucial. I’m constantly inspired by our team’s strong work ethic—not just in handling the physical challenges, but in how we support one another and collaborate to find creative solutions to the issues we face in the field.”
Arielle Garsson, Youth Education Coordinator
“In 2015, I started volunteering at a wildlife rescue centre as a member of their youth program. To say that role gave me hands-on experience with wildlife conservation would be an understatement; I spent many Friday nights watching both crew leads and staff veterinarians make tough calls about their patients. I could directly see the impact I was making as I followed patients from intake to release, which encouraged me to shift my post-secondary plans towards pursing a STEM career.”