Youth Engagement

Fishing Opportunities and Instruction

Blue Fish Canada, a registered charity dedicated to the future of fish and fishing, has program objectives that include:

• Educate youth and provide opportunities for youth to learn about wild fish and their freshwater and marine environments.
• Provide youth hands-on experience to increase their awareness about the restoration and protection of freshwater and marine environments.

According to a recent CBC news report, youth anxiety levels are up 30% in the past two years, and with research pointing to portable electronics and social media as partially responsible, Ottawa’s youth would benefit from increased access to shorelines and the tranquility and mind-calming benefits of spending time connecting with nature.

Dr. Stephen Kellert dedicated his career to researching the connection between youth and nature. He’s quoted as saying, “we have become increasingly blind to the reality that our species, like all species, evolved in a biological – not an artificial, engineered, or machine dominated – context, and that consequently our physical, emotional and intellectual fitness continues to rely on a vast matrix of connections to natural systems and processes, particularly during childhood.”

One of Blue Fish Canada’s programs entails organizing shore fishing opportunities for youth. However, locations for hosting such events in urban environments is often limited, making it necessary for Blue Fish Canada to secure special permission from officials to utilize their docks or shorelines for fishing.

Link here to Watch news coverage of a Girl Guide event organized by Blue fish Canada: http://www.ami.ca/category/atw-weekend-edition/media/fishing-girl-guides

Blue Fish Canada also develops instructional materials and skill-building opportunities to aid youth to evolve their fishing skills from simply being able to catch a fish, to do so sustainably. This includes fish identification, sustainable harvesting guidelines, and catch-and-release best practices. These instructional materials are also proving popular with experienced anglers who choose to become mentors of youth and who want to make sure they are passing on the latest science-based information.

For news coverage of a Kids Casting Zone activity Blue Fish Canada organized at a recent outdoor show: http://ctv.news/oS7C4gd

To arrange to have Blue Fish Canada support your youth fishing event, or to acquire advice on how to organize a successful youth fishing event, please contact Blue Fish Canada at:

Email: Director@bluefishcanada.ca
Phone: 613-232-2028