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Our Mission

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The Stewardship Association of Municipalities Inc (known affectionately as SAM) works with the Eastern Habitat Joint Venture (EHJV) in NL to secure, enhance, & restore important wildlife habitat (wetlands, uplands, coastal areas, & species at risk habitat) within municipal planning boundaries. As a network of communities who practice environmental stewardship across NL, SAM contributes to maintaining & enhancing biodiversity in the province.

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What We Do

The Stewardship Association of Municipalities (SAM) is comprised of a network of municipalities who have formally committed to the practice of environmental stewardship in Newfoundland and Labrador. SAM is an incorporated, non-profit organization.


SAM works in close partnership with the Province's Department of Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture, Wildlife Division to identify significant wildlife habitat found within municipal planning boundaries and to encourage municipalities to seek a balance between development and conservation of this land.
 

Municipal members sign Habitat Stewardship Agreements with the provincial government, publicly committing to the conservation of important wildlife habitat found within their municipal planning boundaries. The first Habitat Stewardship Agreements were signed in 1993 in Gander and Whitbourne.

Municipalities met for the first time in 1994 to share experiences and plan conservation projects, and SAM was formally incorporated in 1999. Since that time, SAM has been successful in encouraging more than 50 municipal governments to engage in wildlife habitat conservation, enhancement and stewardship. SAM’s membership secures over 71,000 acres of wildlife habitat and continue to influence land use activities over more than 671,000 acres right across the province.


SAM’s primary role, in supporting the activities of the Eastern Habitat Joint Venture (EHJV), has been to promote habitat conservation by bringing together the two entities with jurisdiction over land, namely the municipality and the provincial government. Once an agreement has been signed between the parties, SAM continues to support and facilitate the relationship, in partnership with other members of the NL EHJV, by engaging members in environmental education, habitat restoration or enhancement projects and ongoing stewardship.  

 

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What can SAM do for our members

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If you are a member of SAM we are here to help support your conservation efforts.
See the list below of potential areas of support for members of our organization.


Do you have an idea for a project or need support in your stewardship initiatives? Send us an email at
samconservation@gmail.com for help!

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- Conservation planning for your community 

- Help communities with their sustainable Eco-tourism plan

- Help to identify sensitive wildlife areas within your towns planning area/boundary

- Assistance with project planning and implementation of restoration and enhancement projects

- Promotion of municipal stewardship events

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- Scientific review of environmental signage and communication materials

- SAM provides each municipal member with one road sign and one interpretative sign

- Development of interpretative signage for SAM conservation areas

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- Assist with funding applications and proposal

- Written letters of support for your projects/funding proposals

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- Resources to help train your staff/students/residents/green teams that are involved in public environmental interpretation 
 

- Support and delivery of environmental educational programming

- Support in organizing community bird watching events & clean-ups

- Presentation templates on conservation, stewardship, birding, wildlife and more!

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- Help to create partnerships with other members of the EHJV
 

- Tons of resources on trails, geocaching, enhancing habitatscommunity gardens, recycling, climate change, enforcement and more!

 

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