CCC Advisory Board

The Canadian Conservation Corps (CCC) advisory board is tasked with the guidance and mentoring of the CCC program, which was announced January 16th, 2018 by Prime Minister Trudeau as part of the Government of Canada’s Canada Service Corps initiative. The advisory board members will lend their expertise to help the CCC program achieve its core objectives of building a culture of service among young Canadians while providing opportunities for personal growth and the development of service projects designed to help build a better Canada.

Here are the CCC advisory board members:
James Bartram | Mike Bingley | Mary Breunig, Ph.D. | Nick Butt | David A. Byng | Kevin Callan | Dawn Carr | David DeRocco | Tirian Eynon | T.A. Loeffler | Pat Maher, Ph.D. | Shannon Rose | Jon Weirsma | John T. Williams

James Bartram grew up as an enthusiastic educator and outdoor enthusiast; he is a passionate advocate for experiential learning and believes collaboration is the stuff of growth. He has lived and worked in BC, Alberta, New Zealand, and the UK and volunteers on the board of the CC-IUCN and Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award. He was the founding Education Director for the Parks Canada Palisades Stewardship Education Centre, restructured and revitalized Education for the Canadian Wildlife Federation and most recently served as the Vice President for Education & Youth at Ocean Wise. James is currently serving as the Chair of the Canadian Committee for the IUCN.

Mike Bingley has been working in non-formal education for more than 25 years with a career that has taken him across Canada working with communities large and small to help people engage with the world around them. Mike is particularly passionate about helping Canadians experience the natural world and has advised parliament on this topic and led the largest gathering in Canadian history discussing this topic.

Mike joined CWF in 2014 as the first Manager of Experiential Education and became the Director of Education in 2016. Mike developed and implemented many of CWF’s signature programs including the Canadian Conservation Corps, WILD Outside, WILD Family Nature Clubs, and CWF’s conservation intern program. and helped develop the framework that conservation educators use around the world.

Mike’s volunteer experience includes working with the Association for Experiential Education, the Alberta Camping Association, Scouts Canada, and the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award. Mike is a fellow of The Explorers Club, holds a Master’s Degree in Education, and was awarded the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee medal for his work connecting Canadians with nature. In his spare time, Mike enjoys photography, canoeing, and spending time outdoors with his family.

mikeb@cwf-fcf.org
1-800-563-9453 Ext 280
LinkedIn

Mary Breunig, Ph.D. has spent the last two decades as an outdoor recreation professor and Director of Social Justice and Equity Studies at Canadian universities. She recently started teaching at California State University - Sacramento on the traditional and ancestral homelands of the Miwok, Wintu, Maidu, Nisenan (southern Maidu), and Patwin Native peoples. Her scholarship focuses on social and environmental justice, schoolyard pedagogy, student-directed teaching and learning, and Freiran Praxis. Mary is a NOLS and Outward Bound instructor. She is a climber, cyclist, avid paddler, place-based enthusiast, and urban flaneur. To learn more, visit her website at marybreunig.com.

Nick Butt is currently working on an evaluation research project with the Canadian Conservation Corps for his Master's in Educational Research at the University of Calgary. Nick has an undergraduate degree in physics and has worked with informal education organizations for the past 8 years. These organizations include Let's Talk Science, Telus Spark Science Centre, Perimeter Institute, Science Slam Canada, Students on Sustainability, and the Canadian Wildlife Federation. He has also been involved in academic research in the fields of physics, geophysics, and education.

Nick is interested in bridging the gap between informal and formal learning environments in the fields of science and environmental education. He also has an interest in experiential learning environments and works to bring them to K-12 and post-secondary classrooms.

Dave Byng currently serves on Royal Roads University’s Board of Governors and as a Special Advisor to the President, as well as chairing the Finance and Audit Committee. Dave also serves as an Honorary Consul General for the Government of Japan. In addition, Dave provides strategic advice to a wide variety of public sector, not-for-profit, and corporate clients.

Dave recently concluded a 37-year career with the Province of British Columbia as the Ministry of Education’s Deputy Minister. In that role, he oversaw British Columbia’s $6.5 billion K-12 education system – a system that consistently delivers some of the best student outcomes in the world.

Dave has over a decade of experience in senior executive roles with the Province of British Columbia, including positions in the Ministry of Jobs, Tourism and Skills Training, Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure, British Columbia Railway Company, British Columbia Public Service Agency, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Lands.

Dave is an explorer, expedition leader, and photographer. He has supported international relief projects installing water filtration systems in Brazil’s Amazon Basin and scientific expeditions in the Honduran cloud forest, Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula, the remote island archipelago of Haida Gwaii on Canada’s west coast. He is currently leading a scientific expedition focused on establishing a national park and marine reserve on the South Pacific Island of Vanua Levu in Fiji.

Dave volunteers as a member of Ocean Wise’s Education Committee, whose primary objective is directly engaging with one million Canadian youth annually from a marine conservation perspective. Dave also chairs the Honours and Awards Committee for the Canadian Chapter of the Explorers Club.

Dave has been granted a Master of Arts in Leadership degree from Royal Roads University, a Certificate of Intercultural Studies from the University of British Columbia, and a Certificate of Advanced Project Management from Stanford University. In addition, the Institute of Corporate Directors and the University of Toronto, Rotman School of Management awarded Dave the ICD.D designation, as a qualified board director.

He is a recipient of the Premier’s Award of Excellence and the Royal Roads University Founder’s Award. Dave also holds Fellowships with the Royal Canadian Geographical Society in Ottawa, the Royal Geographical Society in London, the Explorers Club in New York City, and is a Distinguished Fellow with the Asia Pacific Foundation in Vancouver.

He currently resides in Victoria, British Columbia with his wife and two sons.

Kevin (aka The Happy Camper) is the author of 18 books; his latest being Once Around Algonquin: An Epic Canoe Journey. He is an award-winning writer and a keynote speaker at outdoor events across North America. Kevin is also a regular guest on several television morning shows and CBC Radio. He has won several film awards, and currently writes columns for Paddling Magazine and Explore Magazine. Kevin was listed as one of the top 100 modern day explorers by the Canadian Geographical Society. He was also made Patron Paddler for Paddle Canada. Kevin has over 35 years of experience in outdoor education and has taught Ecosystem Skills and Environmental Leadership at Sir Sandford Fleming College for 30 years.

Check out his web site at www.kevincallan.com and YouTube channel KCHappyCamper.

Growing the voice of Nature through collaboration and leadership is a hallmark of Dawn’s personal and professional core. In her work with the Canadian Parks Council, in volunteer positions, and as a mother and friend, Dawn strives to integrate an ethic of care for the world by expanding partnerships and relationships that support the powerful benefits of Nature. In her role, as the first woman to hold the position of Executive Director for the Canadian Parks Council, Dawn advises senior executives in Canada’s federal, provincial, and territorial park agencies, and leads initiatives to expand and support a pan-Canadian conservation community. With over 20 years of experience in parks, Dawn’s passion extends into volunteer roles on 3 IUCN world conservation commissions, and board and advisory positions with the Canadian Committee for the IUCN and two Canadian Youth Service Corps programs – Ocean Bridge and the Canadian Conservation Corps. In recent years, Dawn was named to Nature Canada’s Women for Nature network and continues to lead a youth grant program project that supports young Canadians receiving funds to implement projects from coast to coast to coast, connecting youth with nature. Dawn holds a Master’s of Public Administration from Queen’s University and a Master’s of Arts focused on protected area planning and management from the University of Waterloo.

Prior to his current role with CWF, David enjoyed a diverse and extensive 30-year career in national print and broadcast media, marketing, communications, and public relations. He also spent 12 years developing and leading youth programs for the YMCA of St. Catharine’s/Niagara region, including the Youth Action and Youth Adventure Challenge programs, and presiding over the CHML Children’s Fund Registered Charity. As a freelance writer, he has written 12 ESL books that showcase Canadian content for new Canadians as well as publishing a Niagara-based entertainment platform, GoBeWeekly.com. Arriving at CWF in 2014, David has further developed his passion for conservation and the impact youth will have on its future in Canada and around the world.

1-800-563-9453 Ext 279 C: 905 975-4672,
davidd@cwf-fcf.org,
350 Michael Cowpland Drive, Kanata K2M 2W1
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Tirian is a dedicated and experienced Non-for-Profit / NGO sector professional. She has over 20 years of hands-on experience worldwide in program development and implementation, personal & leadership development, facilitation, and training experience, and volunteer management — also as a volunteer herself — primarily in international youth organizations.

Tirian has dedicated her career to working with youth from all walks of life in advocacy and non-formal educational ways of addressing social issues affecting young people – from topics such as health, gender issues, community service, and environmental issues.

She has worked with local youth organizations in Calgary, for the Duke of Edinburgh’s Awards in Canada, and the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS) based in the UK. She has been a life-long member of Girl Guides, as a participant herself, and as a long-term volunteer leader at all levels and on many committees.

tiriane@cwf-fcf.org

TA Loeffler, Ph.D., is an adventurer, nature advocate, author, and professional speaker from St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador. Dr. TA Loeffler brings 30 years of expertise in leading people through significant life-changing experiences to every facet of her work. Her work and adventures have taken her to 52 different countries and all seven continents. TA has completed 6 and 4/5 of “The Seven Summits,” the highest peak on all seven continents. In 2015, TA was named to the “Canada’s Greatest Explorers 100 Modern-Day Trailblazers List” by Canadian Geographic. As a Professor of Outdoor Education and Recreation at Memorial University of Newfoundland, TA has developed a reputation for excellence in experiential education because her students are more likely to be outside chasing icebergs than sitting in a classroom. TA inspires hope, possibility, and vision in those whose lives she touches. Over the past 15 years, TA has shared her message of “Big Dreams, Big Goals” with over 100,000 youth in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Pat Maher, Ph.D., is Dean of Teaching and Professor of Physical and Health Education at Nipissing University in North Bay, Ontario. Previously, he has held positions at Cape Breton University, the University of Northern BC, and the University of Otago (NZ). Pat completed his Ph.D. as a Commonwealth Scholar at Lincoln University in Canterbury, New Zealand. Pat is a 3M National Teaching Fellows and a Fellow of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society, the Explorer's Club, and the Polar Research and Policy Initiative. Pat's research and teaching have taken him coast to coast to coast in Canada, as well as to Norway, Iceland, New Zealand, and Antarctica. He has published widely across disciplinary boundaries and received funding support from a wide variety of national and international agencies.

I am the education director for the Saskatchewan Wildlife Federation. I originally grew up in Alma NB (with a population of 210 people) and did a Biology Undergrad at Memorial University of Newfoundland. I was a member of the first cohort of the CCC who did their Stage One in Algonquin Provincial Park dogsledding and snowshoeing. My Stage Two placement took place at SWF and after finishing my placement I did some contract work for the SWF as well as the provincial fish hatchery until March 2019 when I was hired as their full-time Education Director. I take care of wilderness camps for youth, women's initiatives, poster programs, in school programs, and supervise CCC interns. I have also represented the CWF/CCC at the Leaders today summit in Toronto, at CSC meetings as an alumni representative in Montreal, and at the Day on the Hill in Ottawa last January.

I have been involved in Girl Guides for 19 years and have been a leader for 6. As a Girl Guide leader, my goal has always been to get more youth outside, encouraging exploration, curiosity, and connecting with nature. I make it a priority in both my work and volunteer life.

Jon has been working in the Non-For-Profit / NGO sector for more than 32 years, starting with Scouts Canada on September 4, 1990. Jon “retired” from Scouts Canada on September 4, 2015, on his 25th Anniversary. After a short break, Jon joined CWF’s Education Team on January 4, 2016. Jon was appointed Manager of the Canadian Conservation Corps on November 17, 2017; he built the Team and put together the Program that we now call the CCC. Jon’s career has involved supporting youth, adult volunteers, and colleagues.

Jon loves to volunteer with organizations like Scouts Canada and his home group, the Montreal West Scout Group, as a Rover Advisor (youth aged 18 – 26). He has been doing so since the age of 8 when he joined the Cub Pack. He also likes to support activities (such as Canada Day) in the town where he grew up, Montreal West. For many years, while still living in Montreal West, Jon volunteered for his old elementary school, Edinburgh School.

Jon loves the outdoors, especially downhill skiing, and is a Montreal Canadiens (Habs) fan.

1-800-563-9453 Ext 279 C: 905 975-4672,
jonw@cwf-fcf.org,
350 Michael Cowpland Drive, Kanata K2M 2W1
LinkedIn

John T. Williams lives in Winnipeg and has been a member of the Canadian Wildlife Federation Board of Directors since 2005. He has worked extensively with elected officials to develop wildlife management policies and regulations and with the media regarding wildlife, search, and rescue issues. He has also promoted cooperation between wildlife and conservation organizations across Canada.

Managing a team of volunteers, John created the Manitoba Wildlife Federation Step Outdoors program, an all-encompassing outdoor education activity manual for toddlers to youth. He has extensive Board experience, including as Chair of the Fish and Wildlife Enhancement Fund and Director of the Manitoba Wildlife Federation. He was the 2009 recipient of the Manitoba Wildlife Federation Outdoor Heritage Award and the 2013 recipient of the Manitoba Wildlife Federation Jack Dunlop Memorial Conservation Award.

John’s interests include fishing, snowshoeing, nature walks, nature photography, and spending time with his grandchildren.