The conservation challenge: loss of biological diversity

Loss of habitat is the biggest threat to species globally, followed by the proliferation of invasive alien species. Land conservation directly addresses both these issues, first by securing ecologically significant land and then by ensuring their long-term management. Conservationists have the ability to have a deep and long-lasting impact on our environment’s biodiversity.

Our increasingly rapid rate of development is currently outpacing the rate of conservation. Because of this, North America’s biodiversity is facing escalating threats from a variety of environmental stressors – urban sprawl, the deterioration of our freshwater ecosystems and, perhaps most alarming, the ever-increasing impacts of climate change.

We must act now if we wish to protect the best remaining natural habitats and ecosystems across North America, as well as the numerous plants and animals that rely on them for survival. This is why AFCN raises funds to help protect areas of biological diversity in Canada.

The approach supported by AFCN aims to identify key areas of biological diversity where biological value, opportunity and threat intersect, and to apply appropriate securement and stewardship tools to conserve them. We work with Canadian conservation partners that share this vision and focus on ensuring the long-term survival of native species and ecosystems.

A majority of the work we fund takes place in southern Canada, where biodiversity is at its richest and the human footprint is the most intense – making it the region where most efforts are needed today.