Ron is the inspiring Executive Director of CPAWS Manitoba, joining the team in 2006. He has been instrumental in establishing 23 parks and protected areas in Manitoba with CPAWS, which is nearly three million hectares of healthy lands and waters conserved for future generations.

David is a behavioural ecologist who joined CPAWS Manitoba because he is passionate about science-based conservation. He has a great love for animals and is dedicated to habitat preservation and animal welfare. 

Before joining CPAWS, David managed a non-profit veterans club and was instrumental in bringing the organization to the best financial situation it has ever been in. He also spent time teaching introductory biology at the University of Manitoba.

Neil joined the CPAWS Manitoba team as the Conservation Campaign Manager for our Conservation Areas Initiative. Neil's lifelong passion for nature and stewardship began collecting sticks and rocks on the shores of Lake Winnipeg. 

He received his science degree from the University of Manitoba, with a major in psychology, and studied community and regional planning at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. 

Claire brings to the Conservation Team a passion for environmental protection and her experience in project management within a decolonial framework, joining the CPWS team in 2024.

Educated at the University of Manitoba, she holds a Bachelor of Science in Biological Sciences with a minor in Anthropology. Her degree focus was in the evolution and biodiversity of our world, from the small scale to the ecosystem level. Her anthropology background helps her connect the human world to the natural one.

Nadia is thrilled to be part of the conservation team at CPAWS Manitoba as the Conservation Campaign Officer, joining in 2024. Her deep passion for the environment has significantly shaped her educational journey. She graduated with her Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Studies at the University of Manitoba, with a focus on Northern Studies and a minor in Indigenous Studies. In her free time she enjoys fishing, camping, walking with her family's dogs, and a good bonfire.

Carly is the inspiring leader of our Outdoor Education Program, bringing her vibrant passion for nature and education to every adventure. A certified teacher from the University of Winnipeg After-Degree Bachelor of Education program (April 2023), Carly joined CPAWS part-time in June 2022, quickly transitioning to a full-time educator in 2023. Now, as the manager of our Outdoor Education Program, she has shared the wonders of the natural world with thousands of children and adults across Manitoba.

Kate Heide is an education student studying at the University of Winnipeg to fulfill her lifelong dream of becoming an educator. Her childhood in a sprawling wooded space south of Winkler, Manitoba planted the seeds for her love of the outdoors as the majority of her childhood was spent sledding, biking, camping, and kayaking. Kate joined CPAWS in May of 2023 through a University of Winnipeg work/study program and has since continued her work delivering outdoor learning programming alongside Carly Gray. 

By joining CPAWS Manitoba in 2024, Chelsea brings together her passion for the outdoors and her extensive background in marketing and public relations. A nature lover at heart, Chelsea enjoys exploring Manitoba's parks and spending time with her family at their cabin in the Turtle Mountains. She’s all about embracing the outdoors year-round, with winter running being a personal favourite—nothing beats the crisp, refreshing Manitoba winters for her!

Katie is a communications and social media professional with a passion for sustainability and intersectional feminism. Katie is a graduate from the University of Winnipeg Rhetoric and Communications program.

Joining the CPAWS team in 2023 as the Digital Marketing Coordinator, Katie manages the CPAWS Manitoba social media pages, website development, and content creation.

With her admiration of the prairies, and pride in the city of Winnipeg, Juliana is excited to join the small but mighty Comms team as a Social Media and Content Assistant. Juliana officially joined CPAWS in January, following her three week work placement through the Creative Communications program at RRC Polytech.

Juliana is eager to use her curiosity and communication skills towards making positive changes for neuro-inclusivity for her community, and making the outdoors more accessible for everyone.

Deborah started in 2024 as our first Outreach and Volunteer Coordinator. Born in the charming town of Kenora and raised in the city of Winnipeg, she is a proud graduate of the University of Winnipeg, where she majored in Theatrical Production and Stage Management.

Born and raised in Winnipeg, she is currently working to complete her Rhetoric and Communications Degree at the University of Winnipeg.

Elyce joined the CPAWS team in 2024 on the outreach team. She has since taken on roles helping out the communication, and education team. She now leads our Nature Club hikes.

As a Conservation Ambassador with CPAWS Manitoba since 2022, Austin brings a dynamic blend of storytelling, collaboration, and community engagement to his role. His ability to connect with diverse audiences supports the organization’s mission to protect Canada's wilderness and promote sustainable practices.

Born in Nabha, India, Shiv moved to Canada at the age of 3. He currently is working towards completing his Honours Criminal Justice degree at the University of Winnipeg.

Since childhood, Shiv has always had a love for nature and hiking! He spent the summer of 2024 working as the Inner City work study intern with the CPAWS Education Team. Now Shiv works behind the scenes with CPAWS finances, and outreach.

She’s currently pursuing her BSc Majors in biology at the University of Manitoba. With a flourishing passion for nature, wildlife and music she is working as a Conservation Outreach Ambassador this summer, where she connects with the diverse members of the community
about the ever so fascinating works in conservation.

She resembles a proton, always positive. And when life gives her lemonade, she figures out a way to make it lemons.

Madisyn is pursuing a BSc in kinesiology at the University of Winnipeg. She drives to make a difference in her community by coaching hockey and being involved in sports in her home city of Winnipeg.

Madisyn has been drawn to nature ever since she can remember, and will join CPAWS as a Conservation Outreach Ambassador this summer. She enjoys travelling Canada, especially west, to explore those province’s ecosystems, mountains, lakes, and hiking trails. 

Wes has volunteered with CPAWS since 2005. He has also volunteered with the YMCA-YWCA of Winnipeg and served as Chair of the Fundraising Committee. He was a Certified Financial Planner with Investors Group for 30 years and retired in 2015. 

He and his wife, Pamela Wright, have four wonderful daughters and 10 grandchildren. They both have a passion for outdoor activities, especially cross-country skiing, canoeing and RVing. Skiing in Norway, paddling the Bloodvein River and RVing across Canada and as far North as Alaska stand out! Their favourite park in Manitoba is the Grass River Provincial Park.

Kim Mandzy has been volunteering as a board member (secretary) for CPAWS Manitoba since 2005 and works as a biologist for a consulting firm in Winnipeg. She is an avid outdoors enthusiast who enjoys camping, canoeing, hiking, birding, and cross-country skiing.

David joined the board as treasurer in May 2021. A certified Chartered Professional Accountant, his career has been focused primarily in the insurance industry. Previous volunteer work includes coaching community basketball and fundraising for Cystic Fibrosis Canada and Children's Wish Foundation. In his free time, he enjoys hiking, playing sports, working out, and spending time with family.

David was drawn to CPAWS out of a desire to contribute to the protection of wildlife and to support nature-based solutions to climate change. 

Ray spent most of his career as a research scientist with the Experimental Lakes
Area (ELA), then a part of Fisheries and Oceans Canada. His areas of expertise are
the physical, chemical and biological dynamics of freshwaters. As part of his work,
he was fortunate to travel to many remote areas of Canada and work with many
remarkable and committed environmental researchers and local representatives
who possess a great understanding and love for their lands.

Since his retirement in 2009, he helped in the transfer of ELA to the International
Institute of Sustainable Development and now is a member of the ELA Research
Advisory Board. He has also served as a member of the Lake Winnipeg Foundation
Science Advisory Committee since 2009 and was a member of the Whiteshell
Cottagers Association Board of Directors from 2005- 2015. Ray is a member and
past chair of the Glenwood Neighbourhood Association, interacting with the City of
Winnipeg on issues related to infill development.

Ray enjoys recreational sports: running, basketball, skiing, hiking and camping. He
enjoys travelling to see the natural beauty and fascinating cultures in other parts of
the world. Summers in Winnipeg are busy with the jazz, folk and fringe festivals and
trips to lakes and parks.

Sidney has been a member at large with the CPAWS Manitoba board since 2018. He currently works for the Miskooseepi School in the Bloodvein First Nation, where he collaborates with cultural educators, and local community members to deliver land-based learning through the school curriculum.

Prior to becoming a teacher, Sidney divided his time between touring with an activist circus theatre troupe, aboard a tall mast sailing ship, and running sled dogs throughout the pristine backcountry of northern Canada. He brings these experiences full circle by holding an extra-curricular circus club and running a school dog sled program. In his spare time Sidney enjoys paddling, and dogsledding in the beautiful wilderness of his adopted home.

A biophiliac by nature, Jessica loves to work and play outdoors and joined the CPAWS
Manitoba board by invitation in June 2022. She’s travelled extensively throughout Canada, guiding bear-based, multi-day adventures in Churchill and the Great Bear Rainforest in B.C. She is currently pursuing a sustainability-focused MBA and working as the director of marketing and sales for a local B Corp certified tour operator. Jessica is also a classically-trained photojournalist with a BSc in Biochemistry and Biology. 

Ken Kingdon has been a CPAWS member since the early 1990s and joined the board in 2023. Raised on a mixed farm near Minnedosa, Manitoba, Ken has always been attracted to the outdoors. He ended up working his dream job as a naturalist in Riding Mountain National Park (RMNP), which then morphed into a 32-year career with Parks Canada. Together with his wife Rae, they were fortunate to work, live and visit many of Canada’s National Parks over the years.

Recently retired, Ken’s last position was as the Resource Conservation Manager for Prince Albert National Park in Saskatchewan. They call Onanole, MB home, located just outside RMNP.

Ken enjoys a life-long interest in nature and wildlife and is always busy with some citizen-science program or other. Rae and he also partake in many outdoor pursuits, including cross-country skiing, paddle sports, participating in triathlons during the summer, and generally messing around in the garden.

Dr. Bruce Erickson is an associate professor of geography at the University of Manitoba, whose research focuses on the cultural and political dimensions of outdoor leisure, paying attention to how colonialism and nationalism in Canada impact our recreational use of space. He joined the CPAWS board in 2024.