@nformer

Unique Partnership Benefits the
Environment from Maplewood Flats
to Clayoquot Sound

ix ecologically-sensitive regions in

British Columbia are getting a
helping hand this summer through a
unique partnership between the Real
Estate Foundation of British Columbia
and Capilano College.

A monetary grant from the
Foundation will allow eight students
from the College’s Environmental
Science Post-Baccalaureate Diploma
program to work in the regions on land
use and land stewardship practicums.
Conducted in partnership with
community groups and local
government, these practicums will
benefit the communities, the students,
and the Real Estate Foundation, which
will house the final reports of the
students’ activities.

“The Real Estate Foundation is
interested in land use decisions, and its
focus is on sustainability, so all
practicums have a land use
component,” says Vicky Troup, co-
ordinator of the Environmental Science
Program at Capilano College. “These
practicums are very worthwhile. We get
frequent requests from people to see the
reports, which are public documents.”

Projects this summer include:

- assisting in the development of a
forest management plan for the District
of North Vancouver

- surveying vegetation and wildlife for
Wild Bird Trust in Maplewood Flats,
Shoreline Park, and sites in the
Squamish Estuary

- assessing slope stability and
monitoring the sediment budget in the
Clayoquot Watershed

» addressing environmental and
sustainable issues in Burrard Inlet

- rehabilitating and maintaining fish
habitat and preserving the traditional
recreational use of the Chapman Gray

Creek Watershed on the Sechelt Peninsula

- assisting the Lillooet Community
Resources Board in developing strategies
for sustainable resource use and land
management.

“The Real Estate Foundation allows us
to form a partnership with agencies who
might otherwise be unable to take
students, so we’re really forming three-
way partnerships,” Vicky explains,
adding, “Most of these projects wouldn’t
get done if it wasn’t for the Foundation’s
grant.”

All 23 students in the demanding
graduate program have degrees in a
science or applied science discipline.
They are required to do two semesters in

Christiana Mulholland
(left) and Traci
Warkentin gather
information about the
habitat for Wild Bird
Trust at Maplewood
Flats in North
Vancouver. Their
work is part of a
practicum which was
funded by the Real
Estate Foundation of
British Columbia.

the classroom, plus a summer field
school program and an individual
practicum. Other classmates are
involved in practicums that are paid for
by sources such as the Vancouver
International Airport, the Department
of Fisheries and Oceans, B.C. Ministry
of Environment, the US Fish and
Wildlife Service, and private industry.

Through classroom studies and the
fieldwork and practicum components,
students acquire practical skills and
knowledge for dealing with
environmental issues and solving
environmental problems.

“The Real Estate Foundation has
been invaluable to the program,” Vicky
continues. “Invaluable to the students
in launching their careers, as well as to
the recipients of the data. We are very
grateful and appreciative of their
support.”

@ @= Capilano
@em College

Vol. XVIII No. 7
August 16/96