Colleen McCrory

Who was Colleen McCrory?

Colleen McCrory was a Canadian environmental activist.

She was born in New Denver, British Columbia. McCrory founded the Valhalla Wilderness Society, a British Columbia environmental group, in 1975.

McCrory funded her campaign at first through a small clothing store in New Denver. However, a three year boycott by loggers forced her out of business in 1985 and forced her deep into debt.

She was awarded the Governor-General's Conservation Award in 1983 and the IUCN's Fred M. Packard International Parks Merit Award in 1988. In 1992, she was named to the United Nations' Global 500 Roll of Honour and awarded a Goldman Environmental Prize.

She ran as a candidate for the Green Party in the 2001 British Columbia provincial elections.

McCrory's efforts helped lead to the creation of:

⁕Valhalla Provincial Park in the Kootenay region of British Columbia

⁕Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve and Haida Heritage Site in the Queen Charlotte Islands

⁕Goat Range Provincial Park in the Selkirk Mountains

⁕Khutzeymateen Grizzly Bear Sanctuary and the Spirit Bear Conservancy in the Great Bear Rainforest on the central coast of British Columbia

McCrory died of a brain tumor at home in Silverton, British Columbia in 2007, aged 57.