Our freshwater systems require natural shorelines to maintain water quality, provide vital habitat, and prevent erosion. Dive into our resource, "The Science Behind Vegetated Shoreland Buffers", to understand how these powerful shoreline features work. Find it here: https://shorturl.at/xlXyk

Every Shoreland Matters. Every Action Counts. Give your waterfront the future it deserves while continuing to enjoy your property for years to come!  Learn more about Watersheds Canada’s impactful programs and practical resources empowering Canadians to take local action: https://watersheds.ca

Test your water cycle wisdom! 💭 To complete this activity, right click to download and print the image, and then research and fill in each of the terms into its correct square in the image. Then grab some coloured pencils to infuse it with colour!

Species Spotlight: Black Raspberry (Rubus occidentalis) Black Raspberry is a prickly deciduous shrubs species that can grow to 1.5m tall. The leaves are alternate, have pointed tips, coarsely toothed margins, and the underside is covered in silvery hairs.

What will your legacy be?  Our actions today decide the fate of our freshwater resources tomorrow - and one of the most powerful actions you can take is to write Watersheds Canada into your will.

How well do you know your snow? ❄ There are 5 broad classifications of snow: - Powder snow is soft and fluffy in texture.  - Slush is heavy and wet.  - Packed snow is powder that has been compressed   - Corn snow is granular in texture - Finally, graupel has pellets that resemble tiny snowballs.

While there is federal legislation in place to prevent discharge of pollutants such as oil and sewage from marine vessels, grey water is more of a grey area. Read this blog post to find out how to minimize greywater pollution from your boat: https://watersheds.ca/greywater-blog

2025 was a momentous year for our Nature Discovery Backpack program: in total, we launched 7 new libraries! 🎉 Amounting to a total of 60 new backpacks, this expansion will provide 2,000 children and youth with hands-on environmental learning and exploration opportunities.

Thank you for joining us for this year's 10 Days of Winter Fun! You can find all of the activities listed in our latest blog post at https://watersheds.ca/blog In that blog post we've also linked out to the past four years of content, meaning you have access to 50 activities. Go check it out!

To celebrate the tenth and final day of 10 Days of Winter, we encourage you to go for a polar bear picnic! Picnics are not just for the warmer months. With a little extra planning, you can have a cozy picnic any time of year.

For our second-last day of 10 Days of Winter Fun 2026, why not light up the long nights this winter with snow lanterns! They can decorate your yard or line your walkway, adding unique art to your yard.

It's time to challenge yourself and your family and friends with a snow maze! See what designs you can make and how fast you can make it through the maze by walking, running, crawling, or blindfolded as someone gives you directions (with adult supervision)! This activity can also be fun for pets.

Even though it's cold outside, ice cream can be an anytime treat! This recipe is highly customizable and creates a fun, fluffy textured ice cream. We still have three days left of 10 Days of Winter Fun, so be sure to come back tomorrow!

While walking through the snow, you leave prints behind. Look around outside and see what kind of tracks you can see in the snow. Do you see any animal prints? Be creative and create the tracks of the mythical Yeti!

Bats need our help, and one thing we can do is build and install bat boxes. These boxes provide safe roosting places for bats to sleep and raise their young. The best time to build them is late winter and early spring (bat hibernation time) so they are ready when the bats search for summer homes.

10 Days of Winter Fun continue with this winter-themed wind chime craft. Go exploring outside to find your materials, then add to the music of winter with homemade wind chimes!

Do something nice for your local wildlife and “bake” them a snow cake! In winter, there tends to be less food available for our beautiful creatures, and this activity helps to feed them. You also may be able to see more animals. Tune in tomorrow for our fourth activity of 10 Days of Winter!

Canada has many winter trails best explored with snowshoes, so strap some on, explore how they work, and let’s see what’s out there!

A Canadian winter tends to be less colourful than our other seasons, so why not add some ourselves! Using washable paint or markers, you can create temporary window designs. This craft can also reduce birds colliding with your windows.

It's that time of year again! We all know that Canadian winters can be cold and dark, but that just means we get to be more creative in how we enjoy the outdoors! Join us for the next 10 days as we explore different activities you and your family can do to enjoy all the winter season has to offer.

Tomorrow (December 31s) is your last chance to make a year-end donation and receive a non-refundable tax credit for tax season! Your gift today will help to make sure that Watersheds Canada can take more action to protect our freshwater in 2026. Donate today: https://watersheds.ca/donate

Congratulations to Nature Art Raffle winner Chris S.! 🎉 She took home the painting 'Balance' by artist Sue Miller Chris has a fond place in her heart for Watersheds Canada, which she promotes as "her favourite charity." In fact, her cottage overlooks habitat restoration work done recently by us.

We're so excited to announce the launch of our online resource library! 🎉 Here, you can find all our past freshwater stewardship resources compiled into one convenient location. You can even filter by tags or by program to streamline your search! Check it out here: library.watersheds.ca

Species Spotlight: American Beech (Fagus grandifolia) American Beech is a deciduous tree that grows up to 25m tall. This tree has smooth bark that is grey in colour. Its leaves are alternate, blueish-green, and have prominent veining ending in a coarse tooth.  Learn more: https://shorturl.at/zaGnD

On behalf of Watersheds Canada's staff (pictured) and board of directors, thank you to everyone for your continued dedication to protect our lakes, rivers, and shorelines. Wishing everyone a happy holidays and a restful break!

Watersheds Canada staff recently took some time to reflect and celebrate a year of hard work with a tour and lunch at Top Shelf Distillers. Located just down the street from our national office, staff learned about Top Shelf's ambitions to become a freshwater & net-zero leader in their field.

As a small environmental organization with big aspirations for our freshwater, we rely on the passionate support of people like you to keep working hard to protect and restore our freshwater resources. One of the best ways to do so is to donate! Click here: 👉 https://watersheds.ca/donate 👈

Congratulations to Nature Art Raffle Grand Prize Winner Erik P.! 🎉  Erik's impact on freshwater doesn't end here - we are thankful to announce that he has signed on to be a monthly donor to Watersheds Canada. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts to Erik and all other participants!

1/ Please join us as we welcome Mike Thomas as the new Chair of our Board of Directors! Mike’s leadership will support Watersheds Canada in strengthening partnerships and overseeing strategic planning and long-term organizational priorities; namely, healthy watersheds for future generations.

We are so thankful to have received generous funding from the TELUS Friendly Future Foundation to support our Nature Discovery Backpack program delivery! The $10,000 will go into creating a new Nature Discovery Backpack lending library for Indigenous youth in Nogojiwanong (Peterborough).

Species Spotlight: Big Bluestem (Andropogon gerardii) Big Bluestem is a perennial grass that can grow up to 2m tall. The leaves are gray to blueish green, and the flowers are purplish and three pronged, lending to the other name for this plant - ‘turkey foot’. Learn more: https://shorturl.at/aWZEu

Have you heard about the new Resilient Agricultural Landscape Program – Marginal Lands Initiative? This exciting new program will support farmers and other rural landowners in implementing projects that improve soil and water health, restore habitat, and build climate resilience.

Ever wondered how reptiles and amphibians survive the winter? Most species will bury themselves deep in the substrate below the frost line and hibernate all winter long. However, some species of such as chorus frogs produce a natural antifreeze in their blood that keeps it from freezing!

We are honoured to be recognized by Minister of the Environment, Conservation, and Parks Todd McCarthy for our contributions to the development of 10 new constructed wetlands!

"Thanks to your generosity and a match opportunity from Ontario Conservation Accelerator (@theoca.bsky.social) , we have raised the most funds ever in a Giving Tuesday campaign! Our combined actions will result in improved freshwater for all. Thank you for making this possible!"

Fish Habitat program manager Melissa Dakers and Executive Director Robert Pye were invited onto the 'Doc Talks Fishing' podcast! This show, hosted by Bass Pro Shops & Cabela's Ambassasor Gord Pyzer and Liam Whetter, explores fisheries projects with environmental professionals from around the world.

This recent article from Ducks Unlimited Canada discusses our powerful partnership that resulted in 10 wetlands being constructed and naturalized! These projects were delivered thanks to funding support from the Great Lakes Local Action Fund. Read the article here:

Calling all waterfront property owners in the Cornwall/Akwesasne region of Ontario! 📢 The Natural Edge program is now booking site visits in the St. Lawrence River Area of Concern (Cornwall/Akwesasne)! Shoreline owners can get help delivering a shoreline restoration project 🌱 🌲

Species Spotlight: Boneset (Eupatorium perfoliatum) Boneset, also known as thoroughwort, is a species of perennial wildflower that can grow up to 1m tall. It has leaves that are oppositely arranged, dark green coloured and have serrated margins. The flowers are small, white, and clustered.

Have you done your gift shopping for the holidays yet? Our symbolic adoptions make the perfect gift for the freshwater and nature lovers in your life. Plus, we have just added four new ones to our storefront - Red Fox Family, Wood Duck pair, Wild Iris, and Yellow Perch.

Happy World Soil Day! 🌱 Soil is a medium in which life grows, and therefore good soil health is the basis of a healthy ecosystem! Celebrate this special occasion by checking out one of our previous blog posts, "Soil: More Important and Fascinating Than It Seems": https://shorturl.at/VWvH0

Watersheds Canada's inaugural Nature Art Raffle was a tremendous success!  The winning ticket numbers were drawn last Friday at 11am and here are the winners: - Chris S. from Georgetown, ON has won the Sue Miller oil painting - Erik P. from Cassleman, ON has won the Mike Reader wood duck carving

1/ Watersheds Canada was invited to Ducks Unlimited Canada's "A celebration of Conservation" on Parliament Hill last week, a reception to bring leaders and partners together to honour our shared commitment to conserving Canada's wetlands, wildlife, and waters.

Today is Giving Tuesday, and it is your last chance to multiply the impact of your donation! Donating today means more lake habitat restored and more education programs delivered in 2026. All new monthly donations → tripled! All one-time donations → doubled! Donate now: watersheds.ca/match

Today is #GivingTuesday and you can have 3X the impact for people and wildlife who call these areas home. All new monthly donations will be tripled thanks to a match by Ontario Conservation Accelerator! Don't miss your chance to help 3X the wildlife families in 2026. Donate now: watersheds.ca/match

1/ 7 spawning beds for walleye and lake trout got a boost in Ontario in 2025, but there is more still work to do! As more lakes experience fish population declines, restoration work is needed to give their populations the boost they need.

1/ Constructed wetland projects have real implications for waterfowl species that depend on these habitat areas for their migration, breeding, and staging needs. Large-scale loss of wetland habitat needs solutions-oriented projects like those being led by Watersheds Canada and its partners.

Watersheds Canada is on the shoreline and in the water to ensure fish habitat restoration projects are happening! You can ensure more lakes are restored in 2026 by making your Giving Tuesday gift today: watersheds.ca/match

Your Giving Tuesday donation will provide more shoreline communities with the resources they need to take positive actions for their lakes! Don't miss your chance to multiply your impact for Canada's freshwater - donate by December 2nd: watersheds.ca/match

For this Giving Tuesday, all new monthly donations to Watersheds Canada will be TRIPLED, and all one-time donations will be DOUBLED! Donate now and multiple your impact for Canada's freshwater: watersheds.ca/match