What’s Happening in Redberry Lake Biosphere Reserve (RLBR)?

FALL 2012

VOLUME 21

MESSAGE FROM CHAIR Greetings to all! The year 2012 was a very busy year with a number of important delegations visiting the RLBR over this summer.

In July three representatives from a Japanese BR visited us for two days. The delegates came to Redberry to study how our Biosphere Reserve as an organization has been engaging the community and how aware the community is about living in a Biosphere Reserve. The format for the Japanese researchers was of interviewing the BRs Board of Directors, staff as well as local residents. In addition to the formal portion of their visit the delegates spent an afternoon and evening experiencing the Saskatchewan outdoors.

The University of Western Australia is doing research on "Improving Integration of Agricul-ture and Conservation through Biosphere Reserves". They are interested how Redberry as a grass roots initiated BR engages the surrounding RMs, towns and the wider community.

Over the summer Xi Zhao, a SENS student from China, conducted research as a masters

RLBR is offering a

Family Winter Program December 1 and 8, 2012

11am—1pm Research and Education Center

Get active! Put on the snow shoes (use the ones we have here or bring your own) & join us on a winter hike.

Get interested! We will show what winter makes so special and answer your questions.

Get thirsty and hungry! We will stop at a fireplace and have hot chocolate and a smokie on a bun.

Get the prize! Answer the questions in our quiz & win.

Admission: $2 per person

Please RSVP to Susanne (communications@redberrylake.ca, 549-9311) or Rachel (rturnquist@redberrylake.ca, 549-4060)

Supported by:

RLBR Annual General Meeting

Will be held in conjunction with the

Redberry Lake Biosphere Reserve

Regional Planning Meeting November 28, 2012 Starting at 7.30 pm

Ukrainian National Hall, Hafford For more information call John Kindrachuk 549-2360

Redberry Lake Biosphere Reserve Board of Directors

While these and many other activities have been occurring the board and staff has been busy updating our strategic plan as well as establishing a line of communication with the provincial government to bring forth the validity and benefit to the province for the re-establishment of a ‘Funding Memorandum of Understanding’ between the Provincial Government and RLBR.

Enjoy the Holiday Season! - Andrew Hawrysh

project into the ‘Opportunities for Ecotourism in RLBR’. Xi’s completed project is an inventory of all the ecological as well as cultural items, in addition to all possible businesses/entities available that support or could potentially support tourism within the region. And former SENS student Oksana Zbyranyk successfully completed her masters in “Environment and Sustainability” with her thesis on “Collaboration between researchers and biosphere reserve practitioners: A case study of Redberry Lake Biosphere Reserve, Canada”.

In late September Manager and GIS Coordinator of the German Rhoen BR/Thuringia visited Redberry for an official unveiling and release of the joint brochure ‘Partners in the World Network’. This brochure is a result of the development of a partnership agreement signed in 2005 between the BRs Rhoen, Georgian Bay (Ont), Charlevoix (Que) and Redberry Lake. The basic premise of this agreement is ‘long-term cooperation in tourism, agriculture, landscape management and education for sustainable development’.

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VISITORS TO REDBERRY LAKE BR FROM JAPAN In August Dr. Akiko Sakai, Dr. Nobuhiko Wakamatsu and Ryo Sakurai came to Canada and Saskatchewan with two questions: How do researchers living in and researchers visiting the community support the local actions as scientists and community members? How is an organi-zation like the Biosphere Reserve engaging its community?

To answer these questions the three delegates chose four sites in the province: The School of Environment and Sustainability (SENS) at the University of Saskatchewan, Prince Albert National Park, Sturgeon River Ranch and Redberry Lake Biosphere Reserve. The program at Redberry Lake started with an informal discussion with the Executive Directors of the RLBR Board about the history and establishment of the Biosphere Reserve, about envi-ronmental education and awareness and the engagement of the local community in the projects designed and imple-mented for and in RLBR and area.

On the second day three professors from SENS joined the group and started off visiting the family of Brian and Darcy Yasieniuk, local farmers near Hafford. The family gave an introduc-tion about their way of sustainable farming and living and how they appreciate residing in one of the 16 Canadian Biosphere Reserves. Here the Japanese delegation also had the chance to do horseback riding and roping.

The afternoon was dedicated to learn about the history of Saskatchewan when the Voyageurs shaped the country and to actually paddle on Redberry Lake. Vinessa Currie-Foster, owner of Clearwater Canoeing, first gave a hands-on demonstration on how the Voyageurs were dressed and made a living by trading fur back in the days. Keeping this in mind the group went out in a “Voyageur Canoe” to paddle on Redberry Lake. Watching the pelicans nesting on one of the islands was part of this tour as well. After three hours

of being on the water the group came back to the Research & Education Center for a home cooked Ukrainian supper introducing them to one of the main cultures in the Biosphere Reserve. The day ended with a drive through the area to spot some wildlife and to get an impression of the busy harvesting season representing the primary economic activity within the area. The three visitors from Japan spent two nights at a cabin at Redberry Lake which gave them the perfect opportunity to combine doing research and enjoying their stay in Saskatchewan.

Thanks to Brian and Darcy Yasieniuk and their kids, to Jean Epe, Vinessa Currie-Foster, JD Meats, Hermance & Mike Wintonyk and to family Kindrachuk for making this visit unforgettable for our guests!

Brian Yasieniuk is demonstrating Ryo the art of roping.

HAFFORD GRADE 7 ACCOMPANIED UNIVERSITY STUDENTS 30 students and their professors from the School of Environment and Sustainability (SENS), spent three days in RLBR for their annual experimental field trip. Leaving the books behind and learning by doing is the goal of this trip. Bird banding, water quality measurements and rangeland health assessment were some of the students’ tasks.

They also had an exchange with community members about the past and present way of living and working in a rural area like Redberry Lake BR. This exchange makes the annual field trips to RLBR special and authentic for the students.

For the first time the university students also had the chance to teach at their field trip: Grade 7 students from Hafford Central School accompanied the university students for one day and learned how to put up a thin net to catch birds, carefully remove them from the net for examination, and measuring and release them afterwards.

The involvement of local students was a wonderful asset and might become an integral part of this annual event.

© Josef Schmutz

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VISITORS TO REDBERRY LAKE BR FROM GERMANY We hosted two delegates from our partner Biosphere Reserve Rhoen from Germany in September. Together with our Canadian partner BRs Georgian Bay (Ontario) and Charlevoix (Quebec), we presented the joint brochure “Partners in the World Network” to other Canadian Biosphere Reserves at SENS, U of S, and to the public at Redberry Lake Research and Education Centre. To this presentation we were pleased to welcome Barbara Hoggard-

Lulay, Honorary Consul of the Federal Republic of Germany in Saskatchewan, Sabine Doebel-Atchison, Executive Director of the Saskatchewan German Council as well as Alex Cunningham, online marketing specialist with Tourism Saskatchewan.

This brochure is the first joint project of the partnering Biosphere Reserves introducing each of the four sites, their projects and experiences. Written in three languages (English, French and German) the brochure promotes tourism to these Biosphere Reserves and also serves as an example of an active partnership in a World Network.

“There are almost 600 sites in this worldwide network of Biosphere Reserves but networks can only thrive if the people involved get to know each other, exchange ideas and implement joint projects”, explains Karl-Friedrich Abe, Head of Administration of the Rhoen Biosphere Reserve/Thuringia. “We are very proud to have such a vital partnership that goes beyond being colleagues – we found friends here and that is very important to us”, says Abe.

He and his colleague Reinhard Braun, responsible for Geographic Information System (GIS) at the Rhoen Biosphere Reserve/Thuringia also had the chance to visit Saskatchewan’s north.

Tourism Saskatchewan, Clearwater Canoeing and the owners of “Forest House” invited the two delegates as well as representatives from Redberry Lake Biosphere Reserve to this wilderness lodge in the Boreal forest near Missinipe. “Forest House” is constructed and operates to have a minimal impact of the delicate ecosystem.

“This is a very good example of the sustainable co-existence of people and nature”, says Andrew Hawrysh, Chair of Redberry Lake Biosphere Reserve, “Although this region is not a Biosphere Reserve, it demonstrates exactly what a Biosphere Reserve is all about: Living and working in a way that we can offer future generations the same ecological goods and services we were offered.”

The brochure “Partners in the World Network” can be downloaded at www.redberrylake.ca. Hard copies can be ordered at RLBR.

We thank the following people, groups and businesses for their amazing support through donating food and other items, money and time:

Clearwater Canoeing Eb’s Sail & Sports

Forest House JD Meats

Bruce & Denise Kowalchuk Osprey Wings Ltd. Village of Paynton

Re-art-cycle Paynton Robertson Trading Ltd.

Sask Made Tourism Saskatchewan

Audrey Zyznomirski

Andrew Hawrysh, Redberry Lake BR, Rebecca Pollock, Georgian Bay BR, Karl-Friedrich Abe, Rhoen BR, Claude Letarte, Charle-voix BR and Reinhard Braun, Rhoen BR, presenting the brochure “Partners in the World Network” as their first joint project.

* © www.crossed-flag-pins.com

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Congratulations to Oksana Zbyranyk to her masters degree in Environment and Sustainability! As a student at SENS she conducted her thesis on “Collaboration between researchers and biosphere reserve practitioners” and used Redberry Lake Biosphere Reserve as case study. The findings of her thesis were presented to the public in October. The thesis can be found online at www.redberrylake.ca/researchintous. We thank Oksana for choosing Redberry and area for her research and wish her all the best! It was wonderful working with you!

UPCOMING COMMUNITY EVENTS

CONTACT US If you have questions or suggestions for our newsletter.

If you would like to contribute an article.

If you want to receive this newsletter via email.

Redberry Lake Biosphere Reserve Box 221 Hafford SK, S0J 1A0 Phone: 306 549-4060 / -9311 Fax: 306 549-4061 Email: communications@redberrylake.ca URL: www.redberrylake.ca

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At Redberry Lake Biosphere Reserve your contribution will immediately support our work and result in projects that benefit our unique environment as well as the local community and the education of kids and adults.

Please make cheques payable to: Redberry Lake Biosphere Reserve Inc. (see address on the left) or use online donation form at www.redberrylake.ca.

RLBR is an incorporated not-for-profit organization.

COMMUNITY FARMER’S MARKET 2012 IN HAFFORD With approximately 500 visitors and 25 vendors the first season of the Community Farmer’s Market was quite successful.

Naturally and locally raised pork, baked goods, honey, eggs, vegetables as well as local arts and crafts and other products like Tupperware, Epicure selections and Sun-set Gourmet Food were sold throughout the summer. Always worth a visit was the freshly barbecued smokie from naturally raised pork.

Not only the local community, campers and cabin owners from Redberry Lake enjoyed the various products sold at the Farmer’s Market. It also attracted people

passing Hafford on the Highway to stop, shop and visit.

!!! We are planning to continue the Community Farmer’s Market in 2013 and we are looking forward to have even more vendors and visitors!!! For this years Community Farmer’s Market we thank all the volunteers, ven-dors and visitors—especially K-Bottling, Hafford Summer Sizzle, Rebecca Lesko, Russ MacNutt, Meghan Ruedger, Jason Fendelet, Travis Nickolet, Janet & Alanna Hawrysh, Kirsty, Katherina, Kara and Kaeley Kindrachuk.

Turkey Shoot November 23, 6pm-10pm November 24, 2pm-9pm Speers Rec Center Win a turkey with your target shooting skills, your lucky spin of the wheel, or by having your name shot on a target plate wedge. Each entry is $2.50 Concession available both days. Target shooters must be 12 years or older

Turkey Bingo November 29, 7pm Doors will open at 6.15pm Hafford Communiplex Hafford Central School Sr. SLC will be having a Turkey Bingo. Proceeds go to Sr. SLC

Carol Night December 14, 7pm Silver donation and food hamper item. Performances by Kindergarten, Grades 1, 2 & 3, Grades 4 to 6 doing a Pageant, Senior Student Leadership council, Hafford School choir, Hafford Ukelele Group