Bird it up with the Couch Potato Chips!

Why are we called the Couch Potato Chips?

Ron Reid's now-famous Couch Potatoes have become so popular, that the team has had to split into three. This rending left us looking for a clever name without trying too hard, since this event is about raising money, not winning a naming contest. We came up with the Couch Potato Chips (Get it? We've been shaved off the Couch Potatoes, see?)  Our team is feisty: Mark Bisset, Claire and Josh Milligan and Kyra Howes, former stewardship manager of the Conservancy.

If you know all about the Conservancy and what a fantastic and worthy organization it is, you can stop reading here and go directly to the donate button. But if you are still unsure what a non-profit, charitable land trust does when we're not out chasing birds for a buck, read on:

Preserving critical habitat – the Conservancy has already helped protect over 12,000 acres of important habitat, including globally rare ecosystems. Its vital habitat work includes assembling and stewarding the  core of the Carden Alvar properties as well as playing a key role in the initiative that culminated in Ontario making this vital ecosystem a provincial park in September 2014;

Protecting and Sustaining Species at Risk – the Conservancy’s projects in the Carden Alvar alone have helped sustain more than 17 crucial species, including such important wildlife as the Blanding’s Turtle, Bobolinks, Meadowlarks, Monarch butterflies, Snapping Turtles, Whip-poor-wills and Yellow Rails;

Leveraging Scarce Resources for Effective Conservation – Couchiching very efficiently levers its in-house resources through partnerships and extensive volunteer support. The Conservancy’s success in acquiring properties, managing these vital landscapes and sustaining their wildlife reflects its extensive, multi-year partnerships with other organizations and its utilization of more than 180 volunteers to help manage and steward its properties.

Efficient and Sustainable Growth – since its inception in 1993, the Conservancy has expanded carefully and prudently. Couchiching spends 77 to 83% of its revenues on property acquisitions, land stewardship and programs. With net assets of $4.8 million, the Conservancy can weather downturns and continue its essential work to protect crucial habitat.

So come on and help the "Chips" help the Conservancy remain as a beacon of hope in an era of bad environmental news!