About
Mission
Sierra Club Canada empowers people to restore, protect and enjoy a healthy and safe planet.
About the Chinook Group
The Sierra Club of Canada’s Chinook Group has been active in Southern Alberta since 2001. As a part of the Sierra Club of Canada, we believe in the power of the individual to make change. Our mandate is to educate, lobby, and work together for change. We recognize that we are not separate from the earth, but are one with it. With that recognition, we believe that it is our responsibility to protect the earth and health of all creatures living here.
Our goal is to ensure that future generations may enjoy this beautiful area in which we are privileged to live; that we do not destroy its beauty, its diversity, and its ability to sustain us. Therefore, our group is committed to protecting and improving the environment and ecosystems of Calgary and Southern Alberta.
Sierra Club of Canada
The Sierra Club has been active in Canada since 1963. Most chapters originated in the United States but our national office officially opened in 1989. Today we have five chapters and dozens of local groups, as well as the Sierra Youth Coalition. The Sierra Club Canada is an agent of the Sierra Club Foundation, a registered charity. The Sierra Club Canada has gained an excellent reputation with the public for its in-depth research and refusal to compromise on its ideas. The Sierra Club Canada believes in the power of connection of people everywhere working together to create a better world for all.
Read more about the Sierra Club Canada here.
And click here to read more about the work Sierra Club is doing in the United States.
Meet our leadership team
Chair – Kristin has been with the Sierra Club Chinook Group since 2009. Her main objective as chair is to build a strong network for the Chinook Group. She represents our group on the Executive Committee of the Sierra Club Prairie Chapter, on the national membership committee, as President of the CommunityWise Resource Centre (formerly Old Y Centre of Community Organizations) and liaises with the Calgary Area Outdoor Council, the Coalition for a Healthy Calgary and What’s Next. Her main environmental interests are urban sustainability, food security, waste reduction & creative reuse, and active transportation.
Vice-Chair — Chris spends his time with his family (and their dog, Clover) hiking and exploring the magnificent land of Southern Alberta. Active in many volunteer groups over the years, Chris has twice run for the provincial NDP in his home riding of Calgary East. Chris is honoured to take a more formal and active role with the Sierra Club, and is proud of the great work the organization continues to accomplish. Additionally to his role as vice-chair Chris also leads our events section.
Treasurer — Maria loves the outdoors and has enjoyed hiking, skiing, snowshoeing, camping and a variety of other outdoor activities for many years. Maria has a BComm, CGA designation, and several years of senior accounting experience, and is looking forward to using her accounting background to help Sierra Club Chinook.
Outings Coordinator — Darren is a landscape artist who has been in Calgary for 6 years, and he has become addicted to the scenery and outdoor activities that Alberta has to offer. His work reflects the raw, natural beauty that we are so fortunate to have nearby, and hopes it motivates people to help maintain our wilderness areas and waterways for future generations, and to even restore areas once lost. Over the time he has spent here, he has been on numerous hikes by foot and snowshoe and has seen so many areas that are absolutely breathtaking. As Outings Coordinator, his objective is to share these places with the members, and to provide that connection we have with the natural world. Darren believes that getting away from the urban landscape and being out in the wild reinforces our belief in environmental awareness and protection, which are the main goals of the Sierra Club.
Events Coordinator Team — Yulia is an Ecology grad student at UofC. After moving to Calgary from Vancouver half a year ago she felt a shortage of environmentally minded people in her surroundings. She randomly found Sierra Club’s Chinook Group on Meetup, went on a hike with them, she liked the group immensely and decided to get involved.
Communications Team — Cheryl, who graduated with a degree in accounting and financial economics, is currently working full time as an accountant in a tax consulting firm. She has a passion for communications and helping organizations build relationships to gain public awareness. Dedicating time and energy to not-for-profit organization is one of the most enjoyable parts of her life. Through working with a group of professional people, she looks forward to contributing to Sierra Club Chinook and hoping to make a change.
Cassidy is currently a high school student, after post secondary she will pursue her knack for business and become a social entrepreneur with a focus on sustainable energy. She loves to hear about small ideas that turn really big, she often turns her friends from part time employees into small business owners and one day she will be the face of corporate social responsibility. The knowledge and experience gained while volunteering at the Sierra Club Chinook group will lead to a remarkable understanding of how innovative non profits operate and Cassidy is looking forward to being apart of an environmental movement. She hopes to apply concepts from the Sierra Club to a student activist club she is starting at school.
