From the desk of Regional Director Robyn Mawhinney
Hello,
Summer is here, and with it the bustle of busy days, the beauty of lake days, and of course, occasional ferry lineups. This report has an update on solid waste and upcoming community consultation on solid waste diversion strategies.
Europeans knew about North America for over a century before they began settling here. Basque, Portuguese, French, and English fishermen regularly sailed to Newfoundland and Nova Scotia in the 1500s and 1600s for the rich offshore cod harvest. They often camped on the beaches but rarely stayed through the harsh winters. At the time, most Europeans lived in smoky, windowless huts heated by an open fire on the floor—hardly an incentive to brave even colder conditions overseas.
Archaeologist William Gilbert, working at Cupids in Newfoundland, suggests a few changes in homes construction changed everything.
“Recently it has been suggested that the late 16th century innovations such as fireplaces, wooden floors, glazed windows and woolen and felt clothing may have made it easier for Europeans to adapt to and survive during our cold northeastern winters. The first successful colony was established at Port Royal in Nova Scotia in 1605, followed by Jamestown, Virginia, in 1607, Quebec City in 1608, and Cupids in 1610.”
Continue reading How did settlers get to British Columbia?
Jemma Hicken/Folk U – On June 20th, 2025 guest host Jemma Hicken was joined by the Awakeneers, a 6-person, mostly-sibling folk band, for a short live set and interview. Tune in to listen to some fiddle and folk, hear about the upcoming grand opening of the Village Commons on June 27th, and learn quite a lot about beans.
Continue reading Folk U: Awakeneers Live in StudioAn Interview with John Vaillant, Zoe Grams, and Ian Gill
What exactly is a Climate Readers Retreat? At first, I thought is was a Climate Writers’ Retreat, and even though I’m a neophyte I was intrigued that the writer Hollyhock was featuring was John Vaillant – the author of The Golden Spruce, which I had just read, and Fire Weather, which I hadn’t. I decided I would like to go to this retreat so I hightailed it to the Campbell River library and Fire Weather was on the shelf. It must be a sign! The second sign was that Hollyhock has scholarships that I could apply for. This would make attending more feasible. I pled my case and received a generous scholarship. Then I proceeded to do my homework and read Fire Weather. This non-fiction book full of disturbing information focused on the Fort McMurray fire in 2016 gallops like a wild fire at a towering pace. I had been living in north-west Alberta at the time of the fire and the realities of the oil patch economy were a determining social and economic factor in Grande Prairie on the other side of the province.
Continue reading Reading the Climate: Personal, Political, and Planetary Perspectives
Canada’s National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
It turns out the biggest question at the all-candidates debate in Campbell River Tuesday night was if it would go ahead at all.
It didn’t.
The event, organized by the board of the Campbell River & District Chamber of Commerce and the sponsored by the Vancouver Island Real Estate Board, was officially cancelled on Facebook as people were already filing into the Tidemark Theatre when the venue’s doors opened at 4 p.m.
Continue reading Aaron Gunn MIA after Vancouver Island riding debate suddenly cancelled
