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As we dive headfirst into 2025, we're staying steady, focused and committed to connecting and protecting landscapes so people and nature can thrive.
Fresh perspectives, cool collaborations, and even bigger impact: here's a collection of stories (from protecting our headwaters to snow-loving species) that show how we are making a difference together.
 Guided tour of the Columbia Icefield (Y2Y photo) and glacier details (Glacier National Park Service).
Keeping our cool in 2025...
... and helping to protect the world's water towers
The Rocky Mountains and their frozen landscapes hold a significant and vital supply of freshwater for millions of people across the United States and Canada.
They are the hydrological apex of North America: the water that comes from glaciers flows across the continent in three directions, feeding rivers that flow to the Atlantic, Arctic, and Pacific Oceans — lifelines for both wildlife and communities.
But climate change is rapidly accelerating glacier melt, putting our freshwater supply at risk.
In 2025, we're joining the global effort to raise awareness on the significance of water in all its frozen forms during the United Nations' International Year of Glaciers' Preservation.
Y2Y is proud to partner with the Canadian committee, where our Director of Science and Knowledge, Dr. Graham McDowell, plays a key role.
Together, we can protect the ice, snow and water that sustains us all.
Explore the world of glaciers
🧊 From anywhere:
🧊 In Alberta:
- Head to the MELTDOWN art exhibit at the Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies in Banff National Park, open now until April 13.
Evaro Canyon, now protected, links the Rattlesnake and Ninemile ranges, helping wildlife safely cross U.S. Highway 93 in western Montana. Photo: Mitch Doherty, Vital Ground.
Places of Y2Y: Evaro Canyon
In 2014, a grizzly bear named Ethyl captivated biologists when she traveled thousands of miles — wandering all over Montana and Idaho and navigating highways, landfills, and even backyards.
One of the key areas she passed through was Evaro Canyon, a crucial wildlife corridor connecting the Rattlesnake and Ninemile mountain ranges, and which overlooks the Missoula Valley and U.S. Highway 93 in western Montana. Without protection, this area was at risk of development, threatening safe passage for many species.
In 2024, Y2Y and the Vital Ground Foundation secured 55 acres of Evaro Canyon, preserving this essential link in the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem. This brings us closer to reconnecting wilderness from Glacier National Park to the Bitterroot Range, ensuring bears like Ethyl can continue their journeys.
How you can help: Y2Y helped conserve 8,000+ acres of private lands in 2024! Reach out to our team to learn how you can get involved in preserving more wild spaces in the Yellowstone to Yukon region. Email Renee Krysko, Y2Y's Director of Donor Relations: [email protected]
News from the north
Y2Y’s Meaghen Kimmitt shares exciting news from the wild heart of Yukon Territory
"Imagine protecting an area as big as Switzerland — that’s what the Ross River Dena (people) are working toward.
They’ve proposed an Indigenous Protected and Conserved Area (IPCA) spanning over 15,000 square miles in central-east Yukon, about eight percent of the territory’s land!
When I first learned about this effort, I was struck by the sheer scale and significance of this place.
Known as Tū Łī́dlini ("where the rivers meet" in Kaska), it’s a breathtaking landscape of Boreal forests, rugged peaks, and winding rivers — a deeply important homeland for the Ross River Dena.
It’s also a critical stronghold along the Yellowstone to Yukon corridor, sustaining wildlife and wildlife migrations on a huge scale.
In December, after years of hard work, the Ross River Dena signed an agreement with Yukon Government and Parks Canada to study the feasibility of creating a national park reserve.
We were honored to support this effort and help build momentum for this next step. I hope you’ll join Y2Y in celebrating this good news for people and nature!"
Meaghen Kimmitt joined the team in January 2025 as Y2Y’s Yukon Conservation Specialist. A proud Yukoner living in Whitehorse, she was born and raised in rural Yukon on the traditional territory of the Kaska Dene, with roots that extend to the West Coast. Welcome, Meaghen!
The Bow Valley Gap wildlife overpass now arches over Highway 1 west of Calgary, Alberta, making travels safer for people and wildlife. Photo: Dialog/Government of Alberta.
Did someone say, "More wildlife crossings"?
You’re helping us move from barriers to bridges — one project at a time
Exciting update for all you wildlife crossing enthusiasts: Thanks to your support, there are now 177 wildlife crossing structures (and counting) across the Yellowstone to Yukon region!
From Canada to the U.S., crossing projects are gaining momentum. We're helping build public and government support for these vital structures; and it’s working.
Why this is good news:
- Wildlife crossings save lives — of people and wildlife — reducing vehicle collisions with animals and making roads much safer for everyone.
- Crossings help strengthen nature's connections, helping animals to find food, water, and mates, and to adjust their habits in the face of a changing climate.
✅ After almost two decades of research, planning and growing public support for the crossing, construction on the Bow Valley Gap wildlife overpass project is complete. (You might also know this as the Stoney Nakoda Exshaw wildlife arch.)
✅ The Reconnecting the Rockies project on Highway 3 forges ahead! Six out of 10 wildlife crossings connected with fencing are already complete on the British Columbia side. On the Alberta side, a long-awaited underpass is being built, and three more are in the works.
✅ We helped raise the funds to install several miles of new fence and increase the height of existing fence along Idaho’s Interstate 90. This fencing is vital in funneling wildlife to two crossings on the highway.
Drone bears and baby wolverines
Books, podcasts, and videos we think you’ll love as much as we do
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Busy bear: One GPS-tracked grizzly bear's movements were so widespread, researchers compared it to a drone! It's a powerful example of how connected wildlife corridors allow bears to roam freely across their habitat. 🐻 Learn from this bear expert >>
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Elk crossing: A Montanan witnessed a rare, breathtaking herd of elk near Bozeman. This story highlights the importance of private land conservation and wildlife crossings for migration. 🦌 Watch the video >>
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Nature relations: The Ancestral Science podcast shares Indigenous scientific knowledge through conversations with Elders and Indigenous scientists, expanding how science is understood, often through spirit and relationality. 🎧 Listen and learn >>
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Tree reads: Author Daniel Lewis shares the challenges facing our planet through the stories of 12 unique trees, from California’s coast redwoods to India’s sandalwood. 🌳 Get the book >>
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Wandering wolverines: Wolverines are elusive and sensitive to human presence, making glimpses of them rare. This remote-controlled BBC footage offers an intimate look at a wolverine mother and her babies in the Arctic, minus the disturbance. ❄️ Watch the video >>
Wolverine stands on a research station. Photo: Mirjam Barrueto.
Speaking of wolverines...
Protected landscapes across the Yellowstone to Yukon region — from the Rocky Mountains of the United States to protected areas like Banff, Yoho, and Kootenay National Parks in Canada — are safe havens for wolverines. These places provide important core habitat for this wide-ranging animal.
The challenge: Wolverine populations have declined significantly due to overharvesting outside park boundaries, development, and recreation impacts. This Parks Canada video shares more >>
What we’re doing: Y2Y and partners have been studying wolverines to better understand how we can help them survive and thrive in the years to come, especially through responsible recreation practices, planning and management. Learn more about our recreation ecology work and why we should give the wary wolverine space.
Choosing wildlife-friendly trees helps keep wildlife like black bears safe. Shutterstock photo.
Dreaming up your spring landscaping?
Here are some wildlife-friendly tips to bear in mind
Many of us share our backyards with wildlife, from birds to deer and even bears. Human-wildlife coexistence and conflict reduction efforts help animals thrive while keeping spaces safe for people and pets.
You can be a coexistence champion by choosing the right plants and managing fruit-bearing trees — especially in bear country.
Read our guest post on Tree Canada’s blog, where we share practical tips and how some communities are successfully addressing this important issue.
Catch up on more Y2Y news
🗺️ In an interview with Intrepid Travel, Y2Y's Robin Forsyth shares the story of Pluie the Wolf, and how her wide-ranging movements inspired our work to protect wildlife corridors. Read the article.
🐺 Who is Wolf 57? In this Cottage Life article, Y2Y's Dr. Jodi Hilty shares more on another wolf who made a phenomenal journey into Montana nearly a decade after Pluie. Read the story.
📰 Y2Y's Dr. Jodi Hilty wrote an opinion piece in the Calgary Herald: "Investing in Alberta tourism doesn’t have to mean exploiting natural resources." Read the op-ed.
▶️ In this episode of Trail Talk Live (a series by Trans Canada Trail), explore the intersection of trails and conservation with Y2Y co-founder, Harvey Locke. Watch the video.
🐾 The German Energiewende-Magazin (Energy Transition Magazine) published a story on the importance of landscape connectivity and includes an interview with Y2Y's Jordan Reeves. Learn more.
🔎 Y2Y supported new broad-scale research on wolverine genetic connectivity. Read the open-access paper.
Wolf in Yellowstone National Park. Photo: NPS/Jim Peaco.
Feeling inspired?
You can help keep this momentum going!
We've made incredible progress together — but nature still needs us.
Your support keeps critical habitats protected, wildlife connected and thriving, and conservation efforts moving forward for people and nature. Keep the momentum going with a gift today.
Header photo: Hunting fox in Yellowstone (National Park Service/Neal Herbert)
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