All posts by Manda Aufochs Gillespie

Manda Aufochs Gillespie is a writer. She’s the author of the Green Mama series of books (https://thegreenmama.com/books/) and the publisher of the award-winning website thegreenmama.com. She is also a mother, neighbour, and founder of Folk University (folku.ca) on Cortes Island.

Board Reality 101: What is in a piece of wood for Cortes Island?

Today’s Folk U Radio is called Board Reality 101. And by board I am referring to a piece of wood. What is a tree? What are our forests to us? On today’s Folk University we look deeper into this question and the incredible partnership between the Klahoose First Nations and non-nation members in creating a forest managed by a community. 

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Rainbow Ridge Rezoning Hearing

This program was funded by a grant from the Community Radio Fund of Canada and the Government of Canada’s Local Journalism Initiative

The Rainbow Ridge Rezoning Hearing was held this Thursday October 15, 2020, at 2 p.m., six months after it’s originally scheduled date, which was postponed due to COVID19. In question was the rezoning of a 2.45-hectare portion of the 20.75-hectare Rainbow Ridge property. The public hearing involved an in-person option, a phone-in options, and a livestream option: to ensure numerous options for the public while maintaining public safety protocols. There were three Strathcona Regional District staff in person at Manson’s Hall. The rest of the SRD staff and the four rural directors joined virtually, this included alternate director Corry Dow sitting in for Noba Anderson for Cortes Island.

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how do democracies go wrong?

Folk U Radio – With a high stakes election in the U.S.,  a sudden BC election called amidst a pandemic, and numerous local elections across Canada, the role of democracy is on many people’s minds. What works? What doesn’t? How is it that democracies can be used for personal gain and it can seem so hard to change things even when they seem to so obviously go wrong.

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Finding Home: Options and Challenges

This article is the first in a three part podcast series called Finding Home.

The first podcast features Sandra Wood and Ian Scott discussing the options and challenges for creating affordable housing that they have encountered in pursuing the creation of four affordable rental units for seniors and 20 units for all ages on Cortes. That podcast is almost two hours long and includes a number of questions and answers from local community members. Please listen to the podcast for more in-depth explanation of the Seniors Village expansion and the Rainbow Ridge project. 

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Archaeology 102: the BC edition

Achaeology 102: the BC edition of the Science of Once and Future Things.

It’s fascinating to think about how human civilization evolved. In Archaeology 102: The Science of Once and Future Things BC edition professor and neighbour Dr. Brian Hayden, archaeologist, takes us through thousands of years of human history and what it can tell us about the peoples of BC. 

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