Conservation contributors to receive King Charles III Coronation Medals

/EIN News/ -- TORONTO, April 25, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- To mark Earth Week, the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) proudly announces that several individuals are being awarded the prestigious King Charles III Coronation Medal in recognition of their exceptional contributions to nature conservation in Canada.

NCC was selected to be a partner agency to nominate and present medals to those who have made a longstanding contribution to conservation and the protection of nature. Award ceremonies will take place over the coming weeks to help celebrate their service and leadership.

The Government of Canada created the commemorative medal to mark His Majesty King Charles III’s coronation. Administered by the Chancellery of Honours at Rideau Hall, the medal is being awarded to 30,000 individuals across Canada. The medal highlights themes that King Charles III and Canadians hold dear, including service, the environment and sustainability.

“We salute these individuals for their unwavering commitment to nature, which embodies the spirit of the King Charles III Coronation Medal,” said Catherine Grenier, president and CEO with the Nature Conservancy of Canada. “Their leadership, passion and tireless efforts continue to inspire and uplift the conservation community. We are proud to recognize these great Canadians for their incredible contributions.”

The recipients are:

John Riley – Mono, ON: Award-winning author and veteran conservation professional. Riley served as NCC’s first director of conservation science and stewardship, then its chief science officer and member of its Ontario board. He helped negotiate Ontario’s Living Legacy and its Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Act, and co-founded the Oak Ridges Moraine Foundation and Greenbelt Foundation.

Nathalie Pratte – Montreal, QC: A forestry engineer by profession, with a master’s degree in environmental sciences and an MBA, Pratte founded Envirostrategies Consulting Group. She became involved with NCC in 2007 and served as chair on both the national and Quebec volunteer boards of directors. Pratte is now volunteer board chair of the Centre for Land Conservation, supporting all Canadian land trusts.

Bruce MacLellan – Toronto, ON: MacLellan is a communications consultant, entrepreneur and co-founder of Proof Strategies Inc. He has been an active 25-year volunteer with NCC as chair of the national board and now serves as co-chair of the Ambassadors’ Circle volunteer program. A heritage enthusiast and author of two local history books, MacLellan received an award from the Ontario Land Trust Alliance in 2016 for his promotion of conservation.

Chloe Dragon Smith – Fort Smith, NWT: Dragon Smith is a young woman of German-Dënesųłı̨né-French-Métis heritage. She grew up in the North with her maternal Indigenous family, where her mixed identity bestowed strong responsibility for building bridges and creating ethical spaces. She holds expertise in cross-cultural collaboration, Indigenous-led conservation and Land-based systems. In the western conservation system, she has served with the Canadian Parks Council and Canada’s Advisory Panel for the Pathway to Target 1 as well as NCC’s national board of directors. Dragon Smith co-founded Bushkids, an outdoor learning initiative in Yellowknife.

Bill Jones – Fredericton, NB: Jones is a business developer, business owner, private woodlot owner, philanthropist and supporter of the Nature Conservancy of Canada and YMCA nationally and regionally for over 30 years. He was NCC’s founding Atlantic board chair in 1991 and has supported many land conservation projects along the Bay of Fundy and Northumberland Strait. In 2016, Jones received the New Brunswick Lieutenant-Governor's Award for Excellence in Land Conservation.

Dax Dasilva – Montreal, QC: Dasilva is a tech entrepreneur, environmentalist, author and Emmy-award-winning producer who supports conservation both in Canada and around the world. As the founder of Age of Union, a non-profit alliance that supports those working to protect our planet’s threatened species and ecosystems, he brings together like-minded leaders and organizations to champion tangible, local and global conservation projects. Today, Dasilva also announced his second book, Echoes from Eden: A Daring Voyage to Protect Earth’s Last Wild Places, which follows his travels to some of the world’s most endangered ecosystems.

Lisa McLaughlin – Guelph, ON: McLaughlin has dedicated over 25 years to conservation both nationally and globally. She is NCC’s vice-president of conservation policy and planning. She has also served as a member of both the Ontario and Canadian Land Trust Alliances, the International Land Conservation Network and the chair of Canada’s Committee on the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

Bill Caulfeild-Browne – Tobermory, ON: Caulfeild-Browne has been a tireless volunteer for many decades, including longstanding work in conservation on the Saugeen Peninsula. Presently a director of Canada’s National History Society, he is a retired business executive who has been a photographer and a lover of nature for most of his life. He’s also published two books: Images & Origins and Wild Canada. Caufeild-Browne volunteered with NCC, performing roles in audit, investments and governance and was national chair from 2015 to 2017. He was also a member of Parks Canada’s Advisory Committee for local national parks.

Margaret Kelch – Etobicoke, ON: A person with careers spanning the public, private and not for profit sectors, Kelch is an avid birder and conservationist. She held the position of chair of NCC’s Ontario board and served on the national board plus ongoing volunteer work with the NCC’s Ambassadors program in Ontario for nearly 20 years. Her enthusiasm for NCC began when early conservation efforts began in Happy Valley in Ontario, and it has remained her favourite property to visit, a true example of the essential conservation work carried out by NCC.

Larry Simpson – Pincher Creek, AB: Simpson first began his working career as a landman in Alberta’s energy industry and was hired by NCC in 1990 as its first western Canadian staff member. His vision, passion and desire to find strategic collaborative solutions to advance conservation have motivated families, ranchers, corporations, governments and First Nations from across Canada to help create lasting conservation legacies. In Simpson’s words, “The greatest gift we can give the next generation is healthy functioning natural systems within which there will be healthy communities, healthy businesses and healthy people. There is much to be done.”

Philip Brass – Balcarres, SK: Brass is a Nehiyew/Saulteaux artist and hunter from the Peepeekisis Cree Nation. He primarily works as a land-based educator, traditional Knowledge carrier and artist in residence with File Hills Qu’Appelle Tribal Council Education, located in the Treaty 4 Territory of southern Saskatchewan. Brass is a sought-after voice, who’s knowledge and influence have led or contributed to numerous conservation and Reconciliation initiatives, such as the Treaty Land Sharing Network and the Buffalo Treaty. Brass is also a valued contributor who continues to serve as an Indigenous consultant and advisor for NCC.

Laurie Thomson – Toronto, ON: Thomson is a former NCC chair and board member who has supported many conservation projects throughout Canada. The co-founder of the Chisholm Thomson Family Foundation, which generously contributes to nature and climate-focused work across Canada, Thomson is also president of the Friends of Muskoka, advocating for responsible development on Muskoka's lakes and the protection of its natural environment.

Mike Dembeck – Halifax, NS: A photojournalist, filmmaker and multimedia professional, Dembeck has shared his passion for producing visual editorial content and community engagement since starting his career at a daily newspaper on Canada’s East Coast in 1996. Capturing some of the most iconic news and sports imagery of the time, his true passion has always been with a focus on wildlife and the natural environment. Dembeck has been involved with NCC for over 20 years, helping the organization to raise awareness, increase community engagement and share the experience of nature with Canadians. When not outdoors or holding a camera, Dembeck teaches Visual Journalism at the University of King’s College in Halifax.

Helen Kim – Toronto, ON: Born in Seoul, South Korea, Kim spent her early years in Hong Kong, Milan and Seoul. She moved to Canada in 1988 and has worked with NCC for over 25 years in development and finance roles, including gift acceptance, revenue processing, tax receipting and compliance. Kim also devotes personal time to visiting and promoting many conservation sites.

Bob Carswell – Montreal, QC: Carswell is a long-time volunteer and champion for the preservation of critical habitats in Quebec and Canada. He’s a former chairman of the board for NCC as well as Bird Protection Quebec.

David Love – King City, ON: A champion for Canada’s natural spaces, Love fundraised his first dollar for the environment in 1969. He volunteered at Pollution Probe, one of Canada’s first environmental non-government organizations and worked at WWF-Canada for 25 years and for WWF International for five more. In 2021, he and his wife, Ann, entrusted 15 hectares of their Happy Valley Forest property in King Township to NCC. The forest supports a remarkable 30 endangered species. In 2022, Love wrote Green Green, a book about fundraising for nature. Over the years he has been on the board of many environmental organizations, most notably 30 years with Birds Canada. In June, he will complete his term on the Ontario region board of NCC.

Joel Bonin – Montreal, QC: A guardian of Quebec’s natural habitats, Bonin began his collaboration with NCC in the late 1980s and has been instrumental in more than 300 conservation projects in the province. A biologist and amphibian specialist, Bonin is one of Canada’s foremost experts on salamanders.

Stephen Lloyd – Montreal, QC: One of Canada’s leading corporate lawyers, Lloyd often assists in the establishment of sustainable relations between natural resource companies and indigenous communities, and in harmonizing commercial operations with conservation imperatives. Lloyd sits on various boards in the field of conservation work, including the Atlantic Salmon Federation, American Friends of Canadian Nature and the Association for the Protection of Angell Woods. He was chair of NCC’s Quebec board and a member of the national board. He is also a four-term elected Councillor (in charge of zoning and urban planning issues) for the Town of Barkmere, a conservation-minded municipality in the Laurentians, north of Montreal.

About

The Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) is the country’s unifying force for nature. NCC seeks solutions to the twin crises of rapid biodiversity loss and climate change through large-scale, permanent land conservation. As a trusted partner, NCC works with people, communities, businesses and government to protect and care for our country’s most important natural areas. Since 1962, NCC has brought people together to conserve and restore more than 15 million hectares. To learn more, visit natureconservancy.ca.

Media contact

Andrew Holland
National Media Relations Director
Nature Conservancy of Canada
Andrew.holland@natureconservancy.ca
506-260-0469