Yellowstone to Yukon (Y2Y) Project

Starting in January 2025, the Fondazione Capellino will support an ambitious conservation project: the creation of a large biodiversity corridor spanning the United States and Canada.
The objective of the Yellowstone to Yukon (Y2Y) project is to connect and protect a vast area of 3,400 km, stretching from Yellowstone National Park in the United States to the Yukon Territory in Canada.

Y2Y is dedicated to large-scale conservation, preserving the integrity of and restoring habitat connectivity along the Rocky Mountain range, from the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem to the Yukon Territory.
Through a network of wildlife corridors, central protected reserves with buffer zones are established and connected to safeguard the system against the impacts of industrial and urban development.

The project spans an area of over 1.3 million km² (130 million hectares) and involves five US states—Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Washington, and Oregon. Yellowstone National Park is primarily located in Wyoming, though it also extends slightly into Montana and Idaho. The project also includes two Canadian provinces, two Canadian territories, and at least 75 Indigenous territories across Alberta, British Columbia, Yukon, and the Northwest Territories.

One-third of the project is situated in the United States, while two-thirds are in Canada.

PROJECT DETAILS

Y2Y works to protect crucial habitats, establish protected areas (primarily in Canada), and create safe corridors for wildlife. In the United States, efforts focus on defragmentation by removing barriers and constructing overpasses and underpasses. Additionally, Y2Y collaborates with local communities to implement actions that benefit both nature and people.

This work is a collaboration between conservation groups, government agencies, Indigenous governments, landowners, and wildlife scientists.

Existing national, state, and county parks form the foundation of the system, while the creation of new protected areas and special management zones provides the additional cores and corridors needed to complete the network.

The initiative is grounded in the scientific principles of conservation biology, assessments of focal species, and knowledge from local communities, with the added goal of promoting sustainable economies.

This is a selection of updates on the project:

• In November 2025, we renewed our partnership with the Yellowstone–Yukon (Y2Y) project until December 2026, supported by a total commitment of 720,000 $CAN.

The Y2Y region now has at least 179 wildlife crossings, with dozens more in the design and planning stages. Some of the key milestones achieved in 2025 are:

Alberta, Canada: Trans-Canada Highway, Bow Valley Corridor – First wildlife overpass outside national parks
On 13 June 2025, Alberta opened its first wildlife overpass outside the national park system, east of Canmore. Together with over 11 kilometres of fencing, the structure reconnects landscapes and promotes both wildlife movement and safety. It links mountain forests, river valleys, and alpine ecosystems across 6.3 million hectares, protecting grizzly bears, wolves, elk, moose, and more. The overpass has already reduced vehicle–animal collisions by 50% compared with the previous seven-year average, with further decreases expected as wildlife become accustomed to the new structure.
Alberta, Canada: Highway 3 – Long-awaited Rock Creek underpass completed in autumn 2025
The 15-metre-wide underpass, begun in 2024 near Crowsnest Pass, addresses one of the province’s highest wildlife–vehicle collision areas. It significantly improves connectivity for animal movement.
Idaho, USA: McArthur Lake Bridge & Fencing Project completed
This project involved realigning a section of highway to improve safety, removing material under a bridge to increase wildlife passage, and installing over 1 kilometre of fencing to guide animals safely beneath the bridge.
Idaho, USA: Osburn–Silverton crossings on I-90 activated
Y2Y supported a community-led effort to transform an old vehicle bridge along a busy motorway into a wildlife crossing, complemented by over 1 kilometre of guiding fencing. The completed project now serves as a vital corridor across one of the busiest motorways in the United States.

In 2025, Y2Y supported 12 projects advancing the protection of around 25 million acres of wildlife habitat. Key milestones in landscape protection include:

Yukon Territory, Canada: Feasibility study confirms potential new national park
A 2025 assessment validated the creation of a national park in the Peel River watershed, covering nearly 300,000 hectares. Led by Indigenous leadership, the next step is formal negotiations to protect one of Canada’s largest intact ecosystems.
British Columbia, Canada: Process launched to protect land
In June 2025, the British Columbia government and First Nations launched a 12-month accelerated land-use planning process. This approach recognises Indigenous management visions and has the potential to protect over 13 million acres of land for future generations—roughly the size of Greece.

Yellowstone to Yukon (Y2Y) Project

PROJECT DETAILS

Updates

Partner

Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative (Y2Y®) is a collaborative effort between a U.S. non-profit organisation and a Canadian public charity that together connect and protect habitat from Yellowstone to Yukon so people and nature can thrive.

Project data