Postcards from the Field: Chantelle LaFitte

Shell Conservation Intern Chantelle LaFitte

Greetings from Newfoundland and Labrador!

Although Eastern Newfoundland will always be my home, I’ve always had family ties to the West Coast of the Island. That’s why, when the opportunity arose to spend my summer exploring south-west Newfoundland in the province’s only Ramsar site as a Shell Conservation Intern, I had to take it. 

The Codroy Valley Focal Area just happens to be one of the most important environmental treasures in Atlantic Canada. Complete with the Province’s most important estuary, piping plover nesting sandy beaches, and a mountainous region of boreal forest, Codroy Valley truly has it all. Since my first visit to the valley in May of this year, my passion for wildlife and environmental protection has only grown.

Codroy Valley, Newfoundland

Whether it is the ability to distinguish a Piping Plover from a Spotted Sandpiper, or understanding the provincial laws that govern our environment, as a Shell Intern I have become an individual more aware and educated, who strives for change The opportunity to speak with and educate local land owners about the outstanding work that NCC does for the benefit of future generations is enhancing my communication and job supervision skills immensely.

Alone here on the west coast I have the responsibility of mentoring and supervising six summer students. Four of these students make up the Codroy Valley Green Team, and the remaining two monitor and protect the Piping Plover population on Sandy Point and Black Bank. From monitoring Piping Plover to hosting NCC events, these students are essential components to NCC’s Newfoundland Program.

After just graduating with an honors degree in Biology from Memorial University, I have fresh ideas, and a commitment driven towards environmental awareness and protection. I’m sure this combination will continue to prove valuable to the Nature Conservancy of Canada and its work here in Newfoundland.

Cheers,

Chantelle LaFitte