Canada's New Noah - Wildlife Preservation Canada

ARE YOU THE NEXT CANADA’S NEW NOAH?

Canada’s New Noah

Since 1988, the Canada’s New Noah program has given young biologists in Canada the opportunity of a lifetime. Each year, Wildlife Preservation Canada selects a post-secondary graduate from dozens of applicants across Canada for the single, coveted position on the tropical island of Mauritius in the western Indian Ocean.

The full experience includes travel, living, and training for the New Noah to participate in the Durrell Endangered Species Management Graduate Certificate (DESMAN) consisting of 12 weeks of intensive theory, at the Durrell Conservation Academy on the island of Jersey in the U.K. This is followed by 6 months of practical experience with species and habitat recovery teams saving species on the island of Mauritius and its offshore islands.

See Mauritian species

Graduates receive the Durrell Endangered Species Management Graduate Certificate (DESMAN). The full scholarship covers travel, living and training expenses. The program is supported by the Alan and Patricia Koval Foundation.

The program fills an educational gap in this country, providing practical training and field experience in managing wildlife conservation projects and conserving endangered species. The program equips participants with the multi-disciplinary skills required to run their own species recovery programs.

Program Objectives

To train young Canadian biologists in the techniques required to breed endangered species in controlled environments, reintroduce them into the wild and manage wild populations
To give young Canadian biologists practical field experience with in situ conservation projects that complement their academic training
To create a network of skilled Canadian conservation biologists who focus on endangered and threatened species
To increase public awareness in Canada about endangered species and the progress being made to save them from extinction

What Participants Say

One of the most memorable years in my career to date as an endangered species conservation biologist.

– Natasha Lloyd, 2006 New Noah

Conservation Research Senior Specialist at the Calgary Zoological Society’s Centre for Conservation Research

One of the most significant and influential experiences of my conservation career.

– Myles Lamont, 2013 New Noah

Wildlife Technician, Government of Nunavut, and Principal of TerraFauna Wildlife Consulting

A pivotal point in my career … shaped me not only as a professional,
but as a person.

– Dave Stepnisky, 1998 New Noah

Senior Manager with the Fish and Wildlife Habitat Section for Alberta Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Resource Development

Past Canada’s New Noahs

2026

Daryn Farrant, 36th Canada’s New Noah

A field biologist with extensive experience managing burrowing owls and prairie restoration, Daryn brought diverse skills in species monitoring and invasive species management to her New Noah placement, seeking to advance her expertise in herpetology and return with practical recovery techniques for Canadian conservation. Daryn is from Winnipeg, Manitoba. After the coursework at the Durrell Conservation Academy she is now in Mauritius completing the practical experience of the New Noah program.

Discover Daryn’s DESMAN Project

Jenna Kissel, 35th Canada’s New Noah

Jenna is a bird specialist who spent six years with the Northern Spotted Owl Breeding Program in British Columbia, the world’s only conservation breeding effort for northern spotted owls. In 2025, she joined Wildlife Preservation Canada as a conservation assistant with the B.C. Projects team, working with herptiles and invertebrates for the first time. Her work there caught the attention of the New Noah program, and she’s thrilled to have been selected as the 35th Canada’s New Noah for 2026, eager to learn advanced conservation techniques from experts at the Durrell Conservation Academy and in Mauritius. Jenna is from Peterborough, Ontario and is now in Mauritius completing the practical experience of the new noah program.

Discover Jenna’s DESMAN Project

2025

Mariel Terebiznik, 34th Canada’s New Noah

With a master’s degree in herpetology and years of turtle and salamander monitoring at Algonquin Provincial Park in Ontario, Mariel used her New Noah year to expand beyond reptiles and learn conservation planning, species management, and facilitation skills from experts at the Durrell Conservation Academy and field stations in Mauritius. Mariel is a Co-founder and Co-Director of FREED (Field Research in Ecology and Evolution Diversified), a grassroots organization promoting equity, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility by organizing free, immersive experiential courses for Indigenous, Black, and/or Racialized (BIPOC) undergraduate students. Mariel is from Ontario, recently completed surveying for threatened bumble bees with WPC, and is now exploring the next steps in her conservation career.

Discover Mariel’s DESMAN Project

2024

Rosie Heffernan, 33rd Canada’s New Noah

Rosie brought five years of hands-on work with Ontario’s native turtles and successful grant-funded expansion of turtle conservation to her New Noah placement, where she monitored threatened lizards and seabirds in Mauritius while building skills to strengthen wildlife recovery efforts back in Canada. Her work while on Round Island contributed to one of the world’s most successful conservation stories. Rosie is from Bayfield, Ontario and most recently began investigating the efficacy of nest protection for Blanding’s and other at-risk turtles at Pinery Provincial Park!

Discover Rosie’s DESMAN Project

2023

Sarah Falconer, 32nd Canada’s New Noah

Sarah grew up exploring nature around Lake Ontario and studied zoology at the University of British Columbia Okanagan, then completed a master’s degree focused on the Vancouver Island marmot (Canada’s most endangered mammal) through the “ReNew Zoo” program. Before becoming Canada’s New Noah, she worked as a conservation technician at the Assiniboine Park Conservancy in Winnipeg, managing a beluga whale monitoring program and working on conservation efforts for grassland butterflies, burrowing owls, and polar bears. After completing the New Noah program, Sarah joined the Wilder Institute, where she continues to work on the Wilder Action Plan!

Discover Sarah’s DESMAN Project

2022

Stephanie Winton, 31st Canada’s New Noah

Stephanie is a conservation ecologist from Calgary, Alberta with over a decade of field experience. She received the Governor General’s Academic Gold Medal for her master’s research on how road mortality affects western rattlesnakes in British Columbia. Since then, she’s worked with threatened species across Canada and globally. After the New Noah program, she returned to Wildlife Preservation Canada, where she now builds conservation planning capacity and helps develop recovery strategies for species at risk. She values working alongside other passionate women in science and believes conservation requires commitment, flexibility, and a broad skill set.

Discover Stephanie’s DESMAN Project

2019

Eric Jolin, 30th Canada’s New Noah

Eric grew up on the shores of Lake Erie and has spent his career focused on reptiles, especially eastern massasauga rattlesnakes. Eric used his New Noah experience to learn how conservation breeding and reintroduction techniques could be applied to Canada’s most misunderstood species upon his return. He worked on reptile road mortality research at Killbear, spent time in Central America, then returned as a field biologist with Wildlife Preservation Canada’s Ojibway Prairie Reptile Recovery Program. He was also the Project Biologist for WPC’s Massasauga Site Fidelity and Translocation Study. He now works with Omnia Ecological Services as a Caribou Survey Fixed Wing Crew Lead!

2018

Amélie Roberto-Charron, 29th Canada’s New Noah

Amélie is an ornithologist from Edmonton who initially resisted taking an ornithology course in university. She was convinced it wasn’t for her until a presentation on bird migration tracking changed her mind. After years researching migratory songbirds and coordinating bird observatory programs, Amélie’s New Noah placement deepened her passion for understanding bird migration and conservation breeding programs for threatened species across multiple countries. She now works for the Government in Yukon as a Regional Biologist in the division of Environmental Sustainability, Fish and Wildlife branch!

2017

Rachael Derbyshire, 28th Canada’s New Noah

Rachael grew up in Brantford, Ontario, reading conservation books and spending time outdoors. She studied Wildlife Biology at the University of Guelph and completed a master’s degree in Ecology there, researching gray jay decline in Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario. That research meant months in the field living in a cabin with no running water or cell service and she loved it. She brings experience with bird banding, mist netting, telemetry tracking, and long-term ecological field research. She’s committed to making conservation research actually apply to real-world management problems.

2016

Laura King, 27th Canada’s New Noah

Laura grew up in Ottawa reading about wildlife and playing in nearby fields. She’s worked on all sorts of projects: genetic studies on Argentine toads, contaminant analysis in cormorants, duck DNA, raising juvenile snapping turtles, freshwater mussel surveys, seabird banding. During her time in Mauritius, she became oddly fascinated with the dodo. It’s everywhere there, she started thinking about why one extinct species matters so much to people’s imagination. She now works with Environment and Climate Change Canada as a NAWMP Joint Venture Coordinator!

2015

Patrick Moldowan, 26th Canada’s New Noah

Patrick is from St Catharines, Ontario, he studied Wildlife Biology at the University of Guelph and spent summers in Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario, working on salamander and turtle research. A volunteer stint in the Peruvian Amazon convinced him that field research was what he actually wanted to do. He completed his master’s at Laurentian University studying the Algonquin Turtle Project. He got the call telling him he was selected as the 26th Canada’s New Noah while museum-hopping in the northeastern U.S. during a winter road trip. Six months in Mauritius shifted his entire perspective on conservation.

Since then, he’s completed his PhD at the University of Toronto studying salamanders at Algonquin. Now he is a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Biology at Mount Allison University! As he wrote in his original application: “A person does not work a day in their life if they love what they do.”

Read one of his papers from Mautitious: Sticks and stones: notes on the ecology and conservation of an endemic stick insect (Apterograeffea marshallae) and the restoration of an island ecosystem

2014

Martin Kastner, 25th Canada’s New Noah

Martin grew up in Montreal without a TV, so he spent his time exploring neighborhood alleyways with his sister and reading books about animals he couldn’t find downtown. A volunteer project in the Galapagos controlling invasive species convinced him that habitat restoration would be crucial to future conservation work. Being selected as the 25th Canada’s New Noah meant learning from top experts in the field. Martin went on to become a PostDoc student in the Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation at Virginia Tech!

2013

Myles Lamont, 24th Canada’s New Noah

Myles grew up on a small hobby farm in Langley, B.C. where his interest in wildlife started with a flock of Muscovy ducks when he was five. By his mid-teens, he’d built a collection of exotic pheasants and waterfowl, including some threatened species like Nene and Emperor geese. When he was 23, he took over collection management at Hancock after his mentor had to leave Canada. After finishing his degree, he started his own consulting company specializing in conservation breeding and wildlife management.

Being selected as Canada’s New Noah gave him the chance to learn about Mauritius’s threatened endemic species firsthand and build relationships with other conservationists. Myles is now the founder and Principal Biologist for TerraFauna Wildlife Consulting, Inc.!

Read one of his papers from Mautitius: Territorial and courtship displays of Mauritius Cuckooshrike Lalage typica

2012

Joshua Noseworthy, 23rd Canada’s New Noah

Joshua grew up in suburban New Brunswick, spending time in the forests and riverbanks near his best friend’s riverside farm. He knew early on he wanted to work outside. Through university, he realized conservation wasn’t being used enough as a management tool. Species are disappearing fast, and he believes all species have the innate right to existence. Being selected as the 2012 Canada’s New Noah meant getting hands-on experience with species-based conservation strategies. Joshua is now the Founding Director & CEO of Global Conservation Solutions!

2011

Ffion Cassidy, 22nd Canada’s New Noah

Ffion grew up in Winnipeg, Manitoba, with experience studying prairie dog population dynamics and witnessing black-footed ferret reintroductions, Ffion used her New Noah year to combine her dual passions for conservation biology and animal behavior. She sought to understand how these fields could improve captive breeding, reintroduction, and management of endangered species. Ffion went on to become a Resource Management Officer for Parks Canada!

2010

Kendra Mcdonald, 21st Canada’s New Noah

Kendra arrived in Mauritius and spent months on Round Island as an Assistant Warden where she worked on plant monitoring, boa searches at night, bird banding, petrel surveys, and tortoise care. She got to witness Mauritius fodies being released on the island and helped train other wardens in deploying geo-locators on Round Island Petrels to track their migration patterns. She returned home inspired to bring what she’d learned back to conservation work in Canada. Kendra is from PEI and is now the Provincial Indigenous Partnerships Coordinator for the Government of Alberta!

2009

Tara Imlay, 20th Canada’s New Noah

Tara started with Wildlife Preservation Canada in 2008, studying the behavior and movements of eastern loggerhead shrikes released from the conservation breeding program. The next year, she became the 20th Canada’s New Noah and spent her time in Mauritius researching kestrel productivity and breeding success. In 2011, she came back to WPC as a species recovery biologist, coordinating the Eastern Loggerhead Shrike Recovery Program. Tara went on to work for ECCC as a landbird biologist!

Read one of her papers from Mauritius: A novel approach to counting geckos: Phelsuma density in Mauritian forests

2008

Ewa Bednarczuk, 19th Canada’s New Noah

During her time as a New Noah, Ewa implemented the invasive house sparrow eradication project on Round Island, Mauritius, and Indian Ocean, to secure habitat for the reintroduction of the critically endangered Mauritian Fody songbird.

Ewa completed both her BSc Honours in Ecology and MSc in Zoology with a specialization in Wildlife Conservation & Molecular Biology at the University of Guelph. She is now the Coordinator of Conservation Biology for Nature Conservancy of Canada!

Read one of her papers from Mauritius: Attempted eradication of house sparrows Passer domesticus from Round Island (Mauritius), Indian Ocean

2007

Christina Davy, 18th Canada’s New Noah

Christina’s days as a New Noah started at 6 a.m. when the birds woke up. She was based on Ile aux Aigrettes where she monitored fodies feeding in the aviary and watched them start building intricate grass nests for the first time. The olive white-eyes were tiny but fearless, constantly chasing birds much bigger than themselves. They spent time bonding with their mates, snuggling and preening each other. She was excited about the breeding season ahead and hoped to see both fodies and the translocated olive white-eyes successfully nest. Christina is from Ontario and went on to become a Research Scientist (Species at Risk) with the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry.

2006

Natasha Lloyd, 17th Canada’s New Noah

As a New Noah at the Jersey Zoo training center, Natasha worked with bats, tamarins, otters, and coatis, and spent a lot of time learning conservation tools, population modeling, and how to write funding proposals. In Mauritius, she worked with fodies and olive white-eyes, monitoring nests, rescuing eggs and chicks, hand-rearing birds, and was there for the first releases onto Ile aux Aigrettes. By the end of her time there, 47 Mauritius fodies had fledged and 16 olive white-eyes had been released. Natasha is now a Conservation Coordinator for Canadian Wildlife Service!

2005

Jessica Steiner, 16th Canada’s New Noah

As Canada’s New Noah in Mauritius, Jessica was the first person ever to hand-feed an olive white-eye chick. She helped rescue two nests: one with chicks at 5 days old, another with eggs and a newly hatched chick. All three eventually fledged and moved into large outdoor aviaries. It was unbelievable to be part of the first team bringing this species into captivity. Jessica is from Ontario and is now a Senior Manager at Wilder Canada Action Plan for the Wilder Institute! Previously, she was a Conservation Programs Director for Wildlife Preservation Canada.

2004

Sarah James, 15th Canada’s New Noah

As a New Noah at the Jersey Zoo’s training center, she designed an education-based project on conservation awareness for students in Mauritius. She also got to watch a cesarean section birth of a baby orangutan, something she’ll never forget. She worked with lemurs, aye-ayes, bats, and marmosets, and helped install rope pathways for tamarins. In Mauritius, she worked with the critically endangered Mauritius fody on Ile aux Aigrettes, watching the population grow from 6 birds on the island to 55, and witnessed the first fodies hatch there in 300 years. Near the end, she warmed an abandoned fody egg using her body heat to keep it alive until it could reach an incubator… and it hatched! Sarah went on to become an ecologist for Saskatchewan Environment!

2003

Serge Aucoin, 14th Canada’s New Noah

Serge worked in different zoo sections at the Jersey Zoo’s Training Centre learning husbandry, then designed an independent project on black lion tamarins: a critically endangered primate from Brazil. In Mauritius, he monitored pink pigeons at Combo field station, spending hours up trees watching for nests. He then moved to Round Island to help restore native habitat, preparing nurseries for thousands of seedlings that would reforest the island’s degraded landscape. He is now a Marine Mammal Technician for DFO!

2002

Azure-Dee Farago, 13th Canada’s New Noah

During her time as a New Noah, Azure-Dee trained at Jersey’s lemur, bird, and reptile sections, she learned about enrichment for animals, prepared specialized diets, and spotted pink pigeon nests tucked into branches. She headed to Mauritius where she monitored pink pigeons and worked with echo parakeets. Despite splitting her knee on Round Island’s landing rock within her first hour, she continued working, holding baby echo chicks, taking blood samples, and hiking through gorges. She proved that determination matters more than a few stitches. She extended her stay at Mauritius to help as much as she could, she was dreading the thought of leaving but knew she wanted to bring what she’d learned back to Canada. Azure-Dee is from Saskatchewan and she went on to become a Contract/Programme Manager with the International CCS Knowledge Centre!

2001

Merilee Temple, 12th Canada’s New Noah

After training in Jersey as Canada’s New Noah where she designed a captive breeding program for burrowing owls, Merilee spent months in Mauritius monitoring pink pigeons and echo parakeets. She was particularly struck by how much the training in Jersey paid off in Mauritius. The skills she learned came in handy immediately and made her work more useful. She located a wild-released female echo parakeet that was successfully breeding and banded nestlings 30 feet up in skinny trees using creative scaffolding solutions. Merilee is from Nova Scotia!

2000

Diane Lynn Casimir, 11th Canada’s New Noah

Diane started as an intern at the Calgary Zoo’s Conservation Research Department in 2000, studying Vancouver Island marmots–Canada’s most endangered animal. As Canada’s New Noah, in Mauritius, she hand-raised and released echo parakeet chicks, training them to respond to whistle calls and sunflower seeds while monitoring their flights from early morning through the day. Her echo parakeet releases improved survival skills in the wild and independence. Diane is from B.C. and she went on to become a Species at Risk Biologist with Parks Canada!

1999

Patrick Garcia, 10th Canada’s New Noah

A western Canadian wildlife biologist and veterinarian with 20 years of experience across remote wilderness areas including Madagascar, Uganda, Borneo, Mexico, and Tanzania, Patrick brought diverse expertise with endangered species to his New Noah placement in Mauritius. His work has taken him from field research to community education, delivering over 200 presentations to schools and community groups, and he continues to engage the public in wildlife conservation efforts through organizations like the Oakville Humane Society. He is from Victoria, BC and is now a vet at Burloak Animal Hospital!

1998

Dave Stepnisky, 9th Canada’s New Noah

For Dave, the New Noah programme was a pivotal point in his career, it shaped him not only as a professional, but as a person. He holds a BSc in Forest Management from the University of Alberta and a MSc in Conservation Biology from the University of Kent. He is from Alberta and he is now a Manager of Wildlife and Habitat Assessment Section for Environment and Climate Change Canada!

1997

Lance Woolaver Jr., 8th Canada’s New Noah

Lance has loved animals since he was young, he knows conservation works–we just need to do a lot more of it. During his time as a New Noah he worked with species on the brink of extinction, including the Mauritius kestrel, which was down to just four birds left on Earth at the time. Since returning to Canada in 2001, he’s worked with eastern loggerhead shrikes, kakapos, condors, and Ridgway’s hawk nestlings. He spent years managing conservation projects for the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust in Madagascar, working with ploughshare tortoises, Madagascar pochards, and Alaotra gentle lemurs.

He joined Wildlife Preservation Canada in 2017 as Executive Director. His career came full circle, using the same conservation breeding and reintroduction techniques he learned abroad to save Canada’s threatened species. Lance is from Wolfville, Nova Scotia and continues to be the Executive Director at WPC to this day!

1996

1995

1994

1993

1992

1991

Scott Grindal, 2nd Canada’s New Noah

As a young and burgeoning wildlife biologist, Scott was incredibly honoured and excited to learn from and work with dedicated conservationists in Jersey, Mauritius, and Madagascar. The New Noah programme equipped Scott with a lifelong enthusiasm and skill set for contributing to recovering endangered species. After returning from the experience, he went on to complete a Master’s degree in bat ecology, then spent the next 20 years applying this compiled knowledge to addressing how our human activities impact the ecosystems in which we live. He is from Calgary Alberta and is now a Senior Environmental Coordinator at ConocoPhillips!

1990

Art Blundell, 1st Canada’s New Noah

As Canada’s first New Noah, Art trained at the Jersey Zoo’s International Training Centre where he worked with a bear family, then went on to join the struggle to save birds on the brink of extinction in Mauritius. By the time he returned home in spring 1991, Art had worked with over 100 species of endangered animals. He came back well trained to tackle escalating conservation concerns in his own backyard. Art is from Nanaimo, BC and is now a Principal at Natural Capital Advisors!

Learn more about the Canada’s New Noahs experience. Read the field blogs.

Frog is possible

May 12, 2026/by Daryn Farrant

New spider species discovered

Canada's New Noah, News and Events Canada's New Noahs Next Adventures Overseas Species

May 11, 2026/by Sarah Falconer

Chattering of choughs

Canada's New Noah, News and Events Canada's New Noahs Overseas Species

April 24, 2026/by Jenna Kissel

Research

Wheler, C.L., and Fa, J.E. 1995. Enclosure utilization and activity of Round Island geckos (Phelsuma guentheri). Zoo Biology 14: 361-369.

Williams, E.R. 1995. Wildlife Preservation Trust Canada: establishment, conservation programmes and Canada’s New Noah programme. Dodo, J. Wildl. Preserv. Trusts 31: 13-19.

Bednarczuk, E., C. J. Feare, S. Lovibond, V. Tatayah, and C. Jones. 2010. Attempted eradication of house sparrows Passer domesticus from Round Island (Mauritius), Indian Ocean. Conservation Evidence 7: 75-86.

Imlay, T., R. Dale, S. Buckland, C. Jones, and N. Cole. 2012. A novel approach to counting geckos: Phelsuma density in Mauritius forests. Herpetological Review 43 (3): 391-396.

Lamont, M. M. 2016. Territorial and courtship displays of Mauritius Cuckooshrike Lalage typical. Bulletin of the British Ornithologists’ Club 136 (2): 147-149.

Moldowan, P. D., J. A. Copsey, N. Zuël, V. Tatayah, and N. Cole. 2016. Sticks and stones: notes on the ecology and conservation of an endemic stick insect (Apterograeffea marshallae) and the restoration of an island ecosystem. Phelsuma 24: 72-79.