This week is Native Prairie Appreciation Week, where environmental groups take the time to recognize the prairie's unique ecosystem and how people can learn more about it. For the Saskatchewan Prairie Conservation Action Plan (PCAP), the week is an opportunity to talk about how we can keep the prairie ecosystem resilient.
Manager for PCAP, Carolyn Gaudet, talks about the week and why she feels it is important to celebrate the week as it enters its 27th year.
"The purpose of the Native Prairie Appreciation Week, or NPAW, is to raise awareness and appreciation of native prairie ecosystems and their importance in Saskatchewan. So it's the third week of June, and it's proclaimed by the Ministers of Agriculture and Environment in the province as well as in a few of the major cities."
"It's the only week in North America devoted to recognizing and celebrating the diverse value of native prairie grasslands and so Native Prairie Appreciation Week is just a way to bring awareness to the value of native prairie, including providing habitat for numerous grassland species at risk and benefits to our ecosystem and economy, kind of like water filtration and carbon sequestration and forage for cattle."
For the week, the PCAP will be hosting a pair of webinars with Gaudet, explaining that both look towards how we study and react to the environment.
"Our first webinar will be on June 16th at noon, and we will have a presentation about urban wildlife with Dr. Ryan Fisher and Jordan Rustad. This is the result of Jordan's master's project with the University of Regina and the Royal Saskatchewan Museum, and so they used automated recording units and trail cameras to understand how birds and mammals respond to urbanization in Regina."
"Then on June 17th, also at noon, we'll have Dr. Dale Leckie, who is a geologist and an author, so he'll talk about how local geology has shaped the habitats of a variety of animals, and he'll also talk about his recent book that encourages readers to explore natural landscapes."
People can register for both webinars by heading to PCAP's Facebook page or by heading to their website at pcap-sk.org. Those webinars will also be recorded and uploaded to their YouTube channel.
People will be able to enter into enter photos into PCAP's Native Prairie Photo Contest by submitting a photo to npawcontest@gmail.com. Photos will be judged in the categories of best native prairie wildflower, best wildlife in action, and best native prairie landscape.
They'll also have a few live events and larger centres, where PCAP members will be handing out packages of native wildflower seeds at the Regina Farmers Market on June 18th, the Moose Jaw Homegrown Farmers Market on June 21st, and the Swift Current Farmers Market, also on June 21st.