The Importance of Space for Wildlife
- Wildlife needs room to roam, and when their space is restricted, species start to disappear from protected areas, and their ability to migrate is reduced, ultimately affecting their ability to find food, homes, and mates 10s.
- The story of Pluie the wolf, who was collared with a satellite collar and traveled 100,000 km across two countries, two provinces, three states, and three national parks over two years, demonstrates the need for larger conservation areas, as parks alone are not sufficient to sustain animals like her 2m6s.
The Vision for Large-Scale Conservation
- In 1993, conservationists and scientists came up with a vision to conserve animals on a large scale, from Yellowstone to the Arctic Circle, an area three times the size of California, which was initially considered a radical idea, but has since been recognized as a crucial step in addressing the biodiversity and climate crises 4m30s.
- The Yellowstone to Yukon region is a key area for conservation, as it allows animals to survive and adapt to climate change by moving north, up in elevation, or to different slopes and aspects, and it also stores a significant amount of carbon, with the region absorbing the same amount of carbon as 85% of passenger vehicles in Canada emit in a year 6m15s.
Ingredients for Effective Conservation
- To achieve conservation at a large scale, three key ingredients are necessary: a clear vision, the best available information, including Western science, indigenous, and local knowledge, and a community of entities working together, which in the case of the Yellowstone to Yukon region, involves at least 800 different entities 8m45s.
- The Yellowstone to Yukon conservation initiative has made significant progress over the past 30 years, with protected areas increasing by more than 80%, and the goal is to reach 30% protected areas by 2030, which will require designating an additional 50 million acres, with 14 million acres already agreed upon 12m30s.
- The ultimate goal is to ensure that nature has about 50% of ecosystems functioning in the long term, and while significant progress has been made, more work is needed to achieve this target, with the Yellowstone to Yukon region serving as a landscape of hope for conservation efforts 15m10s.
Progress and Goals in the Yellowstone to Yukon Region
- The Yellowstone to Yukon conservation initiative has made significant progress over the past 30 years, with protected areas increasing by more than 80%, and the goal is to reach 30% protected areas by 2030, which will require designating an additional 50 million acres, with 14 million acres already agreed upon 12m30s.
- The ultimate goal is to ensure that nature has about 50% of ecosystems functioning in the long term, and while significant progress has been made, more work is needed to achieve this target, with the Yellowstone to Yukon region serving as a landscape of hope for conservation efforts 15m10s.
Indigenous-Led Conservation and Expanding Protected Areas
- There are at least 20 visions of new indigenous-led protected areas, and if these are established, it is possible to reach over 30% protected areas by 2030 10s.
Connecting Protected Areas for Wildlife Movement
- The second ingredient for effective conservation is to connect isolated protected areas, creating bridges and other kinds of connectivity between them, as seen in the example of a bear in Montana that approached a highway over 40 times before finding a safe crossing point 42s.
- Wildlife crossing structures, such as those in Banff National Park, have been shown to be effective in reducing collisions between wildlife and vehicles, with a 96% decrease in hoofed animal collisions 2m6s.
Nature-Positive Communities and Coexistence
- The third ingredient for effective conservation is having nature-positive communities that care about and make positive decisions for the environment, including coexistence with wildlife in backcountry, urban, and ranching environments 2m6s.
- Coexistence with wildlife can take many forms, including range riders who help keep livestock and large carnivores separate, and proper trash management and fruit tree management to keep toothy animals out of urban areas 2m6s.
The Global Vision for Large Landscape Conservation
- Large landscape conservation, such as the Yellowstone-to-Yukon region, is necessary to give wildlife room to roam and to solve the biodiversity and climate change problems, with the goal of maintaining humanity's connection to nature for future generations 2m6s.
- The idea of large landscape conservation is spreading around the world, with other regions, such as the marine equivalent B2B, working towards similar goals of protecting and connecting habitats 2m6s.
