The Issue:
Canada is home to one of the largest, most ecologically diverse natural landscapes on Earth. From ancient boreal forests and sprawling wetlands to Arctic tundra and vast coastlines, our country shelters over 80,000 species of plants and animals. But this biodiversity—once thought limitless—is under threat including our wildlife.
According to the 2022 Living Planet Report, global wildlife populations have declined by nearly 70% since 1970, and Canada is no exception. Habitat loss, pollution, industrial expansion, climate change, and unsustainable resource extraction have all contributed to alarming rates of ecosystem degradation. Species like the woodland caribou, North Atlantic right whale, and many migratory birds are edging closer to extinction.
Protecting Canada’s natural world isn’t just about saving animals—it’s about preserving clean air, safe drinking water, cultural heritage, and climate resilience for generations to come. It’s about honouring the land and its original stewards, many of whom have safeguarded these ecosystems for millennia.
Thankfully, a growing movement of Canadian charities is leading this fight: restoring habitats, rescuing wildlife, advocating for policy change, and supporting Indigenous-led conservation. Here are some of the organizations making a lasting impact on the future of Canada’s wild spaces.
Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS): Defenders of Wild Places
The Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS) has been at the forefront of wilderness protection in Canada for over 60 years. With chapters in every province and territory, CPAWS works to safeguard public lands, expand protected areas, and ensure that Canada’s national parks remain wild and well-managed.
CPAWS has played a major role in the protection of over half a million square kilometres of wilderness. Their recent campaigns include advocating for the expansion of marine protected areas along Canada’s coasts, halting logging in critical caribou habitats, and opposing destructive mining projects near ecologically sensitive areas.
What makes CPAWS unique is its policy expertise combined with grassroots action. They collaborate with local communities, scientists, and Indigenous Nations to create conservation plans that work for people and planet. Their reports influence government decisions at all levels, and their education programs foster the next generation of nature stewards.
When you donate to CPAWS, you help defend irreplaceable landscapes and give threatened species a fighting chance.
Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC): Buying Land to Save It
The Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) protects nature in the most literal way possible: by purchasing it. NCC works with landowners, businesses, and governments to conserve ecologically important lands before they can be developed, logged, or fragmented.
To date, NCC has protected over 15 million hectares of habitat—forests, grasslands, wetlands, shorelines—across every province. Their science-based approach targets “biodiversity hotspots” where endangered species like monarch butterflies, swift foxes, and Blanding’s turtles can survive and thrive.
Beyond buying land, NCC also restores degraded ecosystems, removes invasive species, and supports sustainable land management. Recent projects include conserving the Prairie Grasslands, Canada’s most endangered ecosystem, and protecting old-growth Acadian forest in New Brunswick.
NCC is trusted, efficient, and impactful. Donations go directly toward tangible outcomes—acres protected, species saved, carbon stored. When you give to NCC, you help build a legacy of green space that can never be paved over.
Wildlife Conservation Society Canada (WCS Canada): Science in Service of Wildlife
The Wildlife Conservation Society Canada (WCS Canada) brings cutting-edge research to the front lines of conservation. With a focus on protecting at-risk species and the habitats they need to survive, WCS scientists work in some of the most remote and rugged parts of Canada: the Yukon, Hudson Bay lowlands, boreal forests, and deep ocean trenches.
Their work combines field biology, conservation genetics, Indigenous knowledge, and policy advocacy to ensure wild animals have the room—and the protection—they need. WCS Canada has been instrumental in conservation efforts for bats, freshwater fish, polar bears, and migratory birds.
One of their key initiatives is the Key Biodiversity Areas (KBA) project, which maps Canada’s most important sites for global biodiversity and urges governments to prioritize them for protection.
Supporting WCS means backing rigorous, peer-reviewed science that influences real-world decisions. Your donation helps fund species monitoring, habitat mapping, and critical policy reports that keep Canada’s natural wealth from being traded away.
Hope for Wildlife: Healing One Animal at a Time
Sometimes, saving wildlife means getting your hands dirty—and Hope for Wildlife, a rehabilitation centre in Nova Scotia, does just that. Every year, they rescue and release over 5,000 injured, orphaned, or sick wild animals, from foxes and owls to turtles and seals.
What began as a small backyard project by founder Hope Swinimer has grown into one of Atlantic Canada’s most respected wildlife rehab organizations. Their team of veterinary staff and volunteers works around the clock to treat animals and return them safely to the wild.
Beyond care, Hope for Wildlife also educates thousands of people every year about how to live in harmony with wild animals. Their educational programs, media appearances, and open-house tours help demystify wildlife rescue and foster empathy.
Donations help cover medical supplies, food, enclosures, and transport for the animals in their care. When you give to Hope for Wildlife, you give second chances—to animals and to the humans learning to protect them.
Indigenous Leadership Initiative: Supporting Land Guardians
For millennia, Indigenous Peoples have cared for the land through traditional knowledge, ceremony, and stewardship. The Indigenous Leadership Initiative (ILI) supports the expansion of Indigenous-led conservation across Canada, especially through the Indigenous Guardians program.
Guardians are trained stewards from Indigenous communities who monitor wildlife, restore habitats, manage cultural sites, and uphold Indigenous laws on the land. They are the “eyes and ears” of the land—bringing both ancestral wisdom and scientific tools to their work.
ILI advocates for federal support for Guardians programs, helps Nations design land-use plans, and facilitates Indigenous Protected and Conserved Areas (IPCAs), which represent a powerful model for conservation rooted in rights, culture, and consent.
Your donation to ILI helps expand Guardian programs, fund training and equipment, and support Indigenous Nations as they reclaim authority over their traditional territories. Supporting ILI means protecting biodiversity while advancing reconciliation and Indigenous sovereignty.
Ecojustice: Taking Environmental Protection to Court
Sometimes, defending nature means going to court—and Ecojustice is Canada’s only national environmental law charity dedicated to using the power of the law to protect wildlife and ecosystems.
Ecojustice lawyers have fought (and won) cases to ban harmful pesticides, defend endangered species, stop illegal logging, and uphold clean water protections. They represent communities, scientists, and activists free of charge in legal battles with far-reaching environmental impacts.
Their recent victories include legal action that forced the federal government to protect critical habitat for the Western chorus frog and a case to stop the expansion of coal mining in Alberta’s Eastern Slopes.
When you support Ecojustice, you help level the playing field—ensuring that the voices of nature and future generations are heard in the courtroom. Your gift supports legal research, public interest lawsuits, and bold action when environmental laws are ignored or broken.
Where Do We Go From Here?
Protecting Canada’s wilderness isn’t just the job of experts—it’s a shared responsibility. While governments, scientists, and Indigenous Nations all play vital roles, individual Canadians can—and must—take part.
Start by supporting the charities featured here. A monthly donation to organizations like CPAWS, NCC, or ILI allows them to plan long-term and respond quickly to emerging threats. Even small gifts add up: $25 can fund a wildlife rescue, a biodiversity survey, or a day of fieldwork in a threatened forest.
If you live near wild areas, volunteer. Join a tree-planting effort, help with trail maintenance, or support local cleanup days. These simple acts connect you directly to the land you’re protecting.
Educate yourself and your community. Learn about the species native to your region, the Indigenous Nations that have cared for those lands since time immemorial, and the challenges your local ecosystem faces.
Support bold policies: stronger endangered species protections, expansion of protected areas, and recognition of Indigenous land rights. Write to your elected officials. Vote for climate action. Advocate for environmental justice in every sector.
And finally, spend time in nature. Whether it’s walking a wooded trail, watching birds in your backyard, or paddling a quiet lake, reestablishing your connection to the wild helps you see what’s at stake—and what’s still possible.
Final Thoughts
Canada’s natural beauty isn’t just scenery—it’s life. It’s medicine. It’s legacy. It’s home.
The charities featured in this article are not simply reacting to crisis—they are building a more resilient, more respectful relationship with the land. They remind us that conservation isn’t about control. It’s about care. It’s about reciprocity. It’s about remembering that we are not separate from nature, but part of it.
Whether it’s a rehabilitated eagle soaring back into the sky, a Guardian walking ancestral trails, or a lawyer defending the right of a frog to sing at dusk—every action taken to protect Canada’s wildlife and wilderness is an act of love.
And that love matters. Because once a forest is cut down, it doesn’t grow back overnight. Once a species disappears, it may never return. But when we act together—now—we can turn the tide.
You don’t have to be a biologist or a park ranger to make a difference. You just have to care enough to act.
And with every donation, every signature, every tree planted, every animal saved—we move one step closer to a Canada where the wild still runs free.
