Below are four short descriptions of exciting Blue Fish Canada projects we want to bring to your attention:

1. With funding from the Ottawa Community Foundation, we have kicked off the first phase of an information gathering and consultation initiative designed to build support for establishing urban shoreline nature nodes. These nodes allow youth and others to safely and accessibly directly access shorelines, and at the same time, create naturalized spaces both on shore and extending into the water. Our goal is to document the process urban planners and stakeholders can follow to create their own safe and accessible urban shoreline nature nodes so urban youth and others can experience the joy of connecting with nature through activities such as fishing.
2. With a grant from the J.B. Bickle Foundation, we are now working harder than ever to develop and share citizen science toolkits for all ages, backgrounds and levels of experience. Material that will both inspire the next generation of outdoor enthusiasts to be conservation minded, right through to empowering guides and venues that make it their business to provide such experiences. We will continue to work with experts in the field to develop our materials, make them engaging and compelling, and to share the tools with partners for even broader dissemination.
3. Under the direction of leading researchers, fishing organizations, conservation groups and the outdoor industry, Blue Fish Canada is charting a course to bring together fish health researchers and angler associations interested in serving as citizen scientists. The goal of the initiative is to establish a Great Lakes basin and St. Lawrence valley network to support fish health and the people who care about the future of fish and fishing.
4. Building on past successes collecting and recycling discarded fishing line, we have installed over a dozen “Fishing Tackle Recyclers” at shore fishing locations and boat launches throughout south-east Ontario. Shore anglers and boaters are encouraged to drop off their used fishing line, soft plastic baits, lead weights and jigs, terminal tackle such as hooks, and plastic straws to ensure they are disposed of properly. Political and stakeholder support is tremendous and demand for our Fishing Tackle Recyclers continues to grow exponentially.

Lots of other activities we’d like to share, but you will just have to wait until our year-end report. In the meantime, share our newsletter, download or stream our weekly podcast Blue fish Radio, and keep on fishing!