The Ignatius Jesuit Centre has partnered with numerous community organizations in the ongoing restoration of the Old-Growth Forest.
Ontario Trillium Foundation
Thanks to a major grant from the Ontario Trillium Foundation, the project was able to expand its environmental stewardship programming for local schools and workshops in community-based ecosystem restoration. As one of Canada’s leading charitable grant-making foundations, the Ontario Trillium Foundation works with others to make strategic investments to build healthy, caring and economically strong Ontario communities.
Ontario Farmland Trust
The Ontario Farmland Trust is a land trust located in Guelph, working to protect Ontario farmland and associated natural areas. The OFT has been our partner in developing the conservation easement that restricts use of the project lands for conservation purposes only and protects it from development.
Dougan & Associates Ecological Consulting & Design
The Ignatius Jesuit Centre is very grateful to the staff of Dougan and Associates Ecological Consulting and Design for their generosity in supporting the Old-Growth Forest Project with their volunteer efforts to produce “Ecological Restoration Opportunities & Priorities.” Dougan and Associates staff contributed many volunteer hours, both in the field and at the office, to produce this document which forms the basis of ecological restoration planning for the project.
Green Legacy Programme
This program from the County of Wellington operates a native tree nursery and has provided thousands of tree seedlings to the Ignatius Old-Growth Forest project, free of charge, in its effort to expand tree cover in the County.
Grand River Conservation Authority
One function of the GRCA is to oversee water resources within the Grand River Watershed. They worked closely with the Ignatius Jesuit Centre in preparing and completing the dam removal from Marden Creek and contribute funds to OGF planting initiatives through their Rural Water Quality Program. GRCA staff have also made themselves available for forestry consultation.
Trout Unlimited Canada
The Speed Valley Chapter of Trout Unlimited Canada is dedicated to helping improve water quality and restore habitat for the small, fragile Brook trout population in the hopes of stabilizing and growing the population in Marden Creek.
Ontario Ministry of the Environment & Climate Change
The Ontario Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change administered the Great Lakes Guardian Community Fund to support its ongoing commitment to the protection and restoration of the ecological health of the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River Basin. Their funding support in 2016-2017 recognized the Ignatius Old-Growth Forest project’s strategic plan through the ongoing restoration of the Marden Creek and its associated wetlands, which sustain the Grand River watershed and, eventually, the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River Basin.