All posts by De Clarke

De Clarke is a sailor, photographer, retired software engineer and intermittent author who since the late 70’s has published both technical writing and essays on various topics ranging from feminism to technology and environmental issues. She has lived on Cortes since late 2011.
Transportation

Cortes EV Forum

On October 31st, the Cortes Climate Action Network (CCAN) hosted an EV forum at Manson’s Hall, attracting over a dozen people. The event began with a prepared presentation about the carbon/energy profile of EVs vs internal combustion engine (ICE) cars, followed by general Q&A in which local owners of EVs answered questions about their cars, usage patterns, and overall experience.

The last EV discussion and demo event to be held on Cortes was pre-Covid, on Earth Day in 2019. Since then the number of EVs on the island has grown considerably and many more brands and models are now available. E-bikes have become more common on our local roads than pedal-only bikes, and interest in “going electric” for our transportation needs seems to be growing.

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Development

Cortes Social Profit Forum 2025

On Tuesday, October 14th the Cortes Island Foundation invited island nonprofit and public service organisations to attend a Social Profit Forum hosted at Hollyhock. This all-day event was well attended and featured presentations by two representatives from “local economy” projects with successful track records: Tara Janzen from the Shorefast Institute for Place-Based Economics and Andrew Greer from Purppl, a consulting group that advises clients who wish to establish “regenerative enterprises.”

Ms Janzen gave a slide presentation describing the successful economic re-invigoration of a small Newfoundland island called Fogo. Mr Greer offered some tools for turning social profit goals into specific business plans and strategies, using examples from the Okanagan area.

Attendees were invited to come up with ideas and concepts for place-specific economic development on Cortes Island, with the goal of providing living-wage jobs that would allow — among other things — local kids to grow up and remain in their home community instead of having to leave in search of gainful employment. The theme of the day was how to create a local economy that provides employment, investment, and income to benefit the community, rather than importing labour and goods and benefiting distant shareholders.

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Transportation

Vessels of Concern: Signs of the Times

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Originally Published February 2, 2020

The grounding of “March Wind” in January 2020 prompted Roy Hales to write a story about boats adrift. I’d like to dig (or dive?) a little deeper under that story and consider some of the factors that have led to the increasing number of derelict and dilapidated boats on the BC Coast.

Continue reading Vessels of Concern: Signs of the Times →
Environment

Paul Watson: Activist, Pirate, Friend

interview with Rex Weyler (All 5 Podcasts of an FM radio special feature originally airing January 21 -25, 2025).

In December 2024, the environmental activist Paul Watson was freed by Danish authorities from detention in Greenland.  He had been held there due to an Interpol red-notice (warrant) issued against him by the government of Japan. The Danish Ministry of Justice denied official requests to extradite Watson for trial in Japan, and he was released to rejoin his family.

What did Paul Watson do that so angered the Japanese government?  Watson, born in Canada, has spent most of his adult life — ever since the 1970s — protesting against the commercial slaughter of whales and other marine mammals.  He was a founding member of Greenpeace, and participated in their early actions to document and obstruct the Russian whaling fleet in the North Pacific.   One of his shipmates on these early campaigns was longtime Cortes resident Rex Weyler.

In this special feature, we offer an extended interview with Rex Weyler; he offers his personal memories of the early Greenpeace campaigns and of Paul Watson, who became a lifelong friend.

Continue reading Paul Watson: Activist, Pirate, Friend →
Transportation

Four Years Later: DIY E-trike Meets Builder’s Needs

In 2019 and 2020, Cortes Currents ran a series of articles about e-bikes on the island, interviewing owners about the pros and cons of their electric-assisted rides. One of the featured bikes was quite unusual: an electric sidecar cargo trike, designed and built by local resident Gabriel Dinim.

It’s now four years later, and Currents checked in with Gabriel about his DIY personal EV. It has been his primary transportation for the last four years, and he’s quite satisfied. We asked him whether he’s ever found the trike inadequate and needed to borrow a car:

The only time I’ve borrowed a car, was when I had to go to the clinic for early blood work and they had to measure the cortisol — and I didn’t want to arrive there all stressed out from riding. And it was cold — so I borrowed a car to do that. Aside from that, No…

I mean, I did borrow a car sometimes to move firewood around — which I could do with the bike, but it takes so many trips, you know. I can put 80, 90 pounds of firewood in the bike. But it’s so much easier to borrow a van and put a thousand pounds of firewood in it and just transport it.

Otherwise, yes, it’s met all of my needs. In the winter, too, I’ve ridden in two, three below zero. Just long johns, wool pants — just lots of gear.

Continue reading Four Years Later: DIY E-trike Meets Builder’s Needs →