Stan Hodgkiss Canadian Outdoors Person of the Year

 

Thank you very much, it is a privilege to be here tonight with so many people who have done so much for Canada’s nature.  When I listen to the achievements of the other award recipients and nominees I am truly humbled to be counted among them. 

So many have supported my project for the past 4 years who deserve recognition including Bird Studies Canada, the Baillie Fund, the Boreal Legacy Project, the staff of the Great Trail, the Universal Women's Network, Eh Canada Travel, the Royal Canadian Geographical Society and the huge number of Canadians from coast to coast to coast without whose kindness and support I wouldn’t have gotten this far.

In kindergarten I had a picture of an American Robin over my coat hook.  At school and at home I was encouraged to climb trees, stomp in puddles, and play outside.  Because of this I have always loved nature and birds, and I chose to pursue a career in conservation striving to make a positive impact through scientific research, peer-reviewed publications, and work on provincial breeding bird atlases.

However when I saw a younger relative struggling with a video-gaming addiction I began to realize how much more time youth spend in digital landscapes rather than natural ones.  I began to recognize that the amount of time we all spend indoors, at our desks and looking at screens was leaving us disconnected from ourselves, each other, and the natural world and I realized that something needed to be done.

And so – to my parent’s horror - I quit my job and sold my house to self fund a 28,000 km trek across the country visiting 15,000 communities along the Trans Canada Trail with the goal of inspiring people of all ages, cultural backgrounds, abilities, genders, orientations, and identities to get outside and connect to nature on more regular basis through birding and Citizen Science. 

I sought to promote the fundamental truths that nature is for everyone, should be accessible for everyone and be a welcoming space to explore for everyone.

The central goal of this hike is to inspire youth to become more engaged, and to get involved in experiential learning opportunities in their own backyards, so that in this increasingly urbanized society and online world they can find balance in the outdoors, foster a respect for nature and a build a path forward to being active leaders in their own communities.

Begun three years ago this #Hike4Birds is an undertaking so vast that fewer people have completed this route from the Atlantic to the Pacific to the Arctic on foot than have walked on the moon - and none of had yet walked it for a cause.  

So far I have hiked across Canada for 450 days covering more than 10,500 km walking from Cape Spear Newfoundland to Alberta.  Along the way I’ve given more than 100 free presentations, written more than 750 blog entries, and released thousands images of the nation, its birds, wildlife and landscapes. The #Hike4Birds has been shared in news articles across Canada and around the world, and captured the attention of families, classrooms, nature groups, hiking organizations and individuals in the process.

The response from the people we’ve connected with in person has been overwhelmingly positive, revealing a widespread interest in the outdoors and highlighting that people’s inherent desire to explore nature is as strong as ever.

So what have I learned so far on this incredible journey? 

First, although people from different regions and backgrounds may stand in different positions on the political spectrum, on the individual level we still share common goals.  Canadians all want a safe and healthy environment in which to live, work, and play and we want our children and grandchildren to have the same thing.  I've spoken with many people who do not identify as environmentalists but who in fact are ‘closet conservationists’ deeply invested in protecting the natural world from their backyards to the boreal.  This represents a huge opportunity for the conservation community to turn interest into action. 

Second, our best hope for the future is in our youth, and right now, too many of them are living almost entirely in manufactured and digital landscapes rather than engaging with natural ones.  If we can't inspire them to turn some of their screen time into green time, they will lose their connection with the natural world and their instinct for curiosity and exploration.  Empowering our young people to make a real difference to conservation through Citizen Science, and by exposing them to programs like Wild Outside and the Canadian Conservation Corps are essential for developing the environmental leaders we need for the future. 

Finally, we must never forget or take for granted that that small acts can lead to big changes.  That the words we speak matter, that the example we set can inspire, and that the dedication of people like yourselves can change the world – one step at a time.

 

 

Each individual in this room and each person in communities working in conservation across Canada are a testament to these simple truths.   

Thank you all for everything each of you does for protecting our natural world.  I am proud of my small contribution and for your recognition of it tonight. 

See you on the trail!

Remember to follow our entire adventure here : www.comewalkwithus.online