Some wee humans walk between the giant tress of KELÁ_EKE Kingfisher Forest on Pender Islands.

Progress update on KELÁ_EKE Kingfisher Forest fundraising campaign

On December 22, 2021, Raincoast and Pender Islands Conservancy announced the first step toward the purchase and protection of a 45 acre coastal property on S,DÁYES, North Pender Island. Two weeks later, we are less than $7,000 away from our first fundraising checkpoint.

ByShauna Doll, Gulf Islands Forest Project Coordinator

A little over a week before New Years Eve, on December 22, 2021, Raincoast and Pender Islands Conservancy announced our latest land acquisition initiative: the purchase and protection of 45 acres on S,DÁYES, North Pender Island, a property we call KELÁ_EKE Kingfisher Forest. We were fortunate to announce this campaign with a $75,000 pledge if we could collectively raise a matching $75,000 before the end of the year.

On New Years Day we ran the numbers and found that due to incredible community support  we had raised $68,000, just $7,000 away from our goal! Luckily our funders have allowed us an additional ten days to meet our $75,000 goal to bring our initial total to $150,000 by January 10, 2022.

This is just the first step in a much larger, 18-month-long campaign with a final fundraising goal of $2.1 million. However, this initial push is essential to set us up for success in this long-term campaign. We have one more week to raise the remaining $7,000.

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KELÁ_EKE Kingfisher Forest is located in W̱SÁNEĆ territory and is home to rare and threatened ecosystems characteristic to the Coastal Douglas-fir biogeoclimatic zone. It is home to over 100 bird species, including belted kingfishers. With the ongoing support of our community of supporters, protecting this land in perpetuity will become a reality.

Help us protect this vital stretch of forest

Gulf Islands Forest ProjectKELÁ_EKE Kingfisher ForestPender IslandsShauna DollW̱SÁNEĆ

Become a Raincoaster

Monthly giving enables you to protect what you love. For 25 years, Raincoast has been furthering biodiversity conservation in BC. We have big plans and with your help we will: 

  • End commercial trophy hunting of large carnivores in the Great Bear Rainforest.
  • Acquire land in order to protect threatened Coastal Douglas-fir ecosystems.
  • Support the recovery of endangered Southern Resident killer whales by restoring Chinook salmon habitat, and so much more.
Chris Genovali, executive director of Raincoast Conservation Foundation.
Chris Genovali, Executive Director

Protecting biodiversity is the most important gift we can give the next generation. Join us as a Raincoaster today!

Shauna Doll completed her Master’s degree at Dalhousie and has worked in forest conservation in Nova Scotia in the context of climate change. She is the Lead Researcher on the Raincoast Gulf Islands Forest Project. You can find her in the lab, or in the forests of the Gulf Islands. More about Shauna.