Key Biodiversity Areas are sites that are remarkable in terms of their natural values, and hold species or ecosystems that depend on the sites for their persistence. A challenge for building a community to identify, delineate and review Canadian KBAs is that most Canadian scientists and government officials are not yet familiar with the KBA Standard. Canada houses superb ecological expertise and knowledge to lead and contribute to the KBA process. We propose to convene those in biodiversity science, conservation, or land management from across Saskatchewan in this meeting to gain an understanding of the KBA process that has been initiated in Saskatchewan and to identify priorities for additional Saskatchewan KBAs going forward.

Meeting objectives:

• Build understanding of what KBAs represent, how they are identified and their relevance to land management and conservation
• Share information on the KBA process in Saskatchewan, including approach, research and information needs, potential sites and species of interest, and opportunities for collaboration.

Meeting agenda:
Introduction to Canada’s KBA Program – Dr. Ciara Raudsepp-Hearne, Director, Canada Key Biodiversity Areas, WCS Canada

Results of scoping work, next steps, input needed – Michael Rudy, SK and AB KBA Coordinator, WCS Canada

Needs for identifying KBAs for threatened and rare ecosystems – Dr. Lucy Poley, KBA Ecosystem criteria coordinator, WCS Canada

Relevance of KBAs to conservation in Saskatchewan, a lesson from an IBA/Biosphere Region – Peter Kingsmill

Questions and discussion period on Saskatchewan’s KBA process and opportunities for collaboration

We thank Nature Saskatchewan and the Saskatchewan Conservation Data Center for ongoing advice and support for KBA work in the province. If you would like to know more about KBAs in advance of the meeting, please contact us.