Environmental Conservation Movement in Canada Research Guide
Environmental Conservation Movement in Canada
Laurier Archives and Special Collections has acquired resources related to the environmental conservation movement in Canada since the 1990s. This guide reflects a selection of the relevant resources within our holdings. Laurier Archives continues to collect the records of national environmental organizations, local conservation groups, and the papers of environmentalists and scholars. Relevant topics include environmental law, biosphere reserves, water resources, and the management of northern resources.
Highlights of the collection include:
- Catherine Parr Strickland Traill’s Narratives of Nature, and History Book for Young Naturalists, published in 1844;
- records of the Canadian Arctic Resources Committee from its formation in 1971 until its dissolution in 2021; and
- samples of soil collected for the Snow and Ice Hydrology Project from the Kenneth Hewitt fonds.
We would like to acknowledge that Laurer Archives and Special Collections is located on the Haldimand tract, the traditional territory of the Neutral, Anishinaabe and Haudenosaunee peoples. This land is part of the Dish with One Spoon Treaty between the Haudenosaunee and Anishinaabe peoples. We recognize, honour, and respect these nations as the traditional stewards, since time immemorial, of the lands and water on which the Laurier Archives and Special Collections are now present.
Environmental Non-Profit Organizations
Canadian Council on Ecological Areas (CCEA) fonds
Date range: 1971-2023
Canadian Council on Ecological Areas (CCEA)/Conseil Canadien Des Aires Écologiques (CCAE) is a national non-profit organization dedicated to help Canadians establish and manage a comprehensive network of protected ecological areas that represent Canada’s terrestrial, freshwater, and marine biodiversity.
Fonds S516: Includes publications, minutes, conference proceedings, correspondence, reports, and executive board records.
Canadian Arctic Resources Committee (CARC) fonds
Date range: 1965-2021
Canadian Arctic Resources Committee (CARC), was a public interest, research and advocacy organization, established in 1971 in direct response to the Mackenzie Valley Pipeline and the Berger Inquiry. The non-profit remained committed to environmentally-responsible northern development, support for the rights of Indigenous peoples, respect for the authority of northern territorial governments and increased international co-operation in the circumpolar world until disbanding in 2021.
Fonds S469: Documents CARC’s formation, output, relationships, programs, conferences, and role in the development of policy in the north.
Canadian Water Resources Association (CWRA) fonds
Date range: 1949-
Canadian Water Resources Association (CWRA) is a national registered charity comprised of individuals and organizations interested in the management of Canada’s water resources. It has branch organizations in most provinces and members in all provinces and territories.
Fonds S748: Contains the records of national and provincial bodies of the CWRA, including minutes, correspondence, and publications.
Assuring Protection for Tomorrow’s Environment (APT Environment) collection
Date range: 1941-2015
Assuring Protection for Tomorrow’s Environment (APT Environment) is a citizens group concerned with environmental issues in Elmira, Ontario. The organization was founded in 1989 when local residents became concerned about air pollution and the proposed Uniroyal Chemical Company hazardous waste incinerator. In 1989 groundwater and surface water reports indicated that the municipal aquifer was contaminated with toxic waste from the Varnicolor Chemical site and the Uniroyal Chemical Co. (now Chemtura Canada) manufacturing site, which had been operating since 1942. As a result, local water wells were closed and clean water is now delivered to the community by pipeline. APT Environment works to address these on-going environmental issues in the Elmira area. They are involved in raising public awareness, gathering data, and liaising with government and other organizations.
Collection S582: Contains records related to environmental issues in Elmira, ON. Includes newspaper clippings, publications, technical reports, and other relevant materials.
Beaver Valley Heritage Society fonds
Date range: 1959-2006
The Beaver Valley Heritage Society is a non-profit citizen’s organization created to preserve and protect the natural environment of the Beaver Valley in Ontario. The Beaver Valley's territory runs through the four townships of Artemesia, Collingwood, Euphrasia and St. Vincent. It stretches over 25 miles, from Flesherton to Georgian Bay at Thornbury. The Beaver Valley Heritage Society aims to represent the interests of the Valley's residents and anyone who wishes to support the Society's objectives of opposing inappropriate development in the Valley, impacting wildlife, fishing, and the natural environment.
Fonds S724: Includes correspondence, publications, maps, articles, and other relevant materials.
Oak Ridges Moraine Foundation fonds
Date range: 2001-2017
The Oak Ridges Moraine Foundation (ORMF) was a non-regulatory governing body operating from 2002 to 2017. It was established to complement the goals of the Ontario Government’s Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan (ORMCP). The ORMCP is a comprehensive strategy for land use and resource management in the Oak Ridges Moraine, which stretches 160 kilometers across southern Ontario from Rice Lake to the Niagara Escarpment.
Fonds S502: Includes grant files, publications and promotional materials, background information, maps, and financial records.
Grand Valley Trails Association fonds
Date range: 1972-2008
The Grand Valley Trails Association (GVTA) is a non-profit volunteer organization with a mandate to build and maintain hiking trails and promote hiking in the Grand River Valley in southwestern Ontario.
Fonds S500: Contains administrative records, minutes, correspondence, project notes and proposals, publications, news announcements, certificates and awards, maps, and photographs.
Rawson Academy of Aquatic Science fonds
Date range: 1978-1995
The Rawson Academy of Aquatic Science (RAAS) was opened in 1979 as a non-profit academy by Canadian aquatic scientists and environmental policy researchers. It was named in honour of Canadian Donald S. Rawson (1905-1961), an internationally known limnologist and an early leader in aquatic science. The Academy examined problems and developed policies and programs regarding water resource use and management in Canada’s saline waters. RAAS was dissolved in 1994.
Fonds S733: Contains working papers, minutes, correspondence, publications, and other materials created and accumulated by the Rawson Academy of Aquatic Science.
Researchers and Activists Archives
Kenneth Hewitt fonds
Date range: 1918-2011
Dr. Kenneth Hewitt (1937- ) is Professor Emeritus of Geography and Environmental Studies at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario. His research focuses on risk and disaster theory, emphasizing the social geography and human ecology of vulnerability and response to catastrophic risks.
Fonds S579: Contains records created and accumulated by Kenneth Hewitt throughout his career. Includes publications, reports, correspondence, papers, maps, surveys, notes, inventories, newspaper clippings, photographs and other material.
Bruce Mitchell fonds
Date range: 1945-2021
Bruce Mitchell (1944 - ) is Distinguished Professor Emeritus in the Department of Geography and Environmental Management at the University of Waterloo in Waterloo, Ontario. His research interests include the institutional and policy aspects of water management, and integrated resource and environmental management.
Fonds S580: Contains works published by Bruce Mitchell throughout his career, background materials, research files, and other related records.
Fred Roots fonds
Date range: 1974-2016
Ernest Frederick (Fred) Roots (1923 - 2016) was a Canadian geologist concentrating on polar science and international environmental research. Fred Roots has been highly recognized for his lifetime of work including the Royal Canadian Geographical Society Massey Medal: the Order of Canada in 1987; and the Explorer’s Club Medal in 2016.
Fonds S721: Contains records and publications related to the UNESCO Man and Biosphere Programme. Includes publications, reports, minutes, and other materials.
John Theberge fonds
Date range: 1967-2000
John Theberge (1940- ) was a professor and researcher in the Faculty of Environmental Studies, University of Waterloo, from 1972 until his retirement in 2000. John Theberge's career focused on his wolf research, pioneering a technique using vocal patterns to identify wolves. John Theberge and his co-researcher and wife Mary Theberge became Canada's premier timber wolf research team, receiving international recognition for their field research.
Fonds S467: Includes publications, correspondence, and other materials produced and accumulated by John Theberge.
Marie Sanderson fonds
Date range: 1931-2004
Marie Elizabeth Sanderson (1921-2010) was a Canadian climate and water researcher. Early in her career Marie Sanderson worked for the Ontario Research Foundation and conducted climatic experiments in the Northwest Territories. From 1965 to 1988 she was a professor at the University of Windsor.
Fonds S703: Contains publications, correspondence, and other materials created and accumulated by Marie Sanderson.
John Jackson fonds
Date range: 1978-2000
John Jackson (19-- - ) is an environmental activist in Ontario, Canada. John Jackson served as President of the Ontario Toxic Waste Research Coalition, a citizens' and agricultural group which succeeded in halting the Ontario Waste Management Corporation's plans to build a hazardous waste plant in West Lincoln in the Niagara Peninsula.
Fonds S441: Contains correspondence, newspaper clippings, background information, hearing transcripts and other material associated with John Jackson’s role in the Ontario Toxic Waste Research Coalition.
Canadian Biospheres
Canadian Biosphere Reserves Association fonds
Dates of Creation: 1974-2012
The Canadian Biosphere Reserves Association (CBRA) facilitates the creation of new biosphere reserves, supports and connects Canadian biosphere reserves, develops and manages national projects, and creates opportunities for Canada's Man and the Biosphere (MAB) Programme.
Fonds S902: Contains records of the Canadian Biosphere Reserves Association and its predecessor the Biosphere Reserves Working Group. Includes correspondence, reports, publications, minutes, photographs, and other related materials.
Georgian Bay Mnidoo Gamii Biosphere fonds
Dates of Creation: 1996-2019
Georgian Bay Mnidoo Gamii Biosphere, commonly referred to as Georgian Bay Biosphere (GBB), is an organization working to protect and enhance the resources of eastern Georgian Bay through environmental stewardship, community education and sustainable development.
Fonds S521: Includes founding documents, meeting minutes, reports and publications, videos, promotional materials, and administrative files.
Environmental Law
Canadian Environmental Law Association fonds
Dates of Creation: 1968-2014
The Canadian Environmental Law Association (CELA) is a specialty community legal clinic providing services to low-income individuals and disadvantaged communities across Ontario in matters of environmental law. CELA was established in Toronto, Ontario in 1970 and has been funded by Legal Aid Ontario since 1982. It was incorporated as a not-for-profit corporation.
Fonds S1000: Consists of publications, briefs, submissions, reports, minutes, newspaper clippings, case files, topical files, and other materials created and accumulated by the Canadian Environmental Law Association.
John Swaigen fonds
Dates of Creation: 1967-2007
John Swaigen (1944 - ) is a lawyer and author in Ontario, Canada. Since being called to the Ontario Bar in 1974, John Swaigen has served as Director of Quality Assurance at the Ontario Legal Aid Plan, Chair of Ontario’s Environmental Appeal Board, Research Associate at the Institute for Environmental Law and Policy, Counsel for the Municipality of Metropolitan Toronto and the Ontario Ministry of the Environment, General Counsel to the Canadian Environmental Law Association and Legal Counsel in the Office of Information and Privacy Commissioner/Ontario.
Fonds S727: Consists of publications, correspondence, research, newspaper clippings and other material created and compiled by John Swaigen, pertaining to the environment and environmental law in Canada.
Theresa McClenaghan fonds
Dates of Creation: 1991-1994
Theresa McClenaghan (1962-) is a Canadian lawyer. She has pursued public interest environmental law throughout her career, representing individuals, groups, and First Nations in environmental matters of local, regional, and national significance.
Fonds S578: Consists of records created and compiled by Theresa McClenaghan during her work concerning the expansion of the Guelph Eastview landfill site, including documents, exhibits, reports, background documents, and other related materials.
Rare Books
The rare book collection consists of manuscripts, printed books, and serials which support the existing thematic strengths of our archival and special collections, including the environmental conservation movement in Canada. Although this guide is not exhaustive, it features examples of both historic and contemporary rare books that pertain to environmentalism.
Highlights of the collection include:
- Our Wild Flowers: A Plea for Protection by Frank Morris
- Oswald Murray McConkey's Conservation in Canada
- Antarctica and Labyrinth Sublime: The Inside Passage by Pat and Rosemarie Keough
- The Canadian Naturalist: A Series of Conversations on the Natural History of Lower Canada by Philip Henry Gosse
- Acclaimed photographer Roloff Beny's book To Everything There Is a Season: Roloff Beny in Canada
Accessing and Using Archival Records
Outdated and Harmful Language
Archives and Special Collections staff understand the impact language and images have on researchers accessing our collections and on the perpetuation of systemic and cultural bias.
Although we cannot change the language or images within records or the items themselves, we can provide context for this material, change the problematic and outdated language used to identify and describe them, and name instances of discrimination found within our collections. Where possible, outdated material has been identified at the series, subseries, and file level.
Visiting the Archives
These materials are non-circulating, and all resources must be accessed in the Reading Room. The Julia Hendry Reading Room is located on the first floor of the Waterloo campus Library (L1-122). Appointments are not necessary to visit the Julia Hendry Reading Room, however, they are recommended to ensure the material you would like to consult is available for your visit.
Please email libarch@wlu.ca to request material and to make an appointment.
Created by Alison Dobslaw, Archives Research Associate 2024-2025 (this position was funded by the Young Canada Works program offered by the Government of Canada).