Tag Archives: Cortes Island

First Days At The Nook; Final Touches

A lot has happened in the five months since Tommaso Biasiolo became the Outreach and Admin Coordinator for ‘the Nook’ in Cortes Island’s Village Commons. The Grand Opening was on June 27, 2025, but there are still small projects to complete. Two special small rooms need to soundproofed; the Nook’s kitchen has not been installed. The original vision was to create a space where nonprofits can work and hold their meetings, but these spaces are now available for individuals as well.

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Live and Local on Cortes Island

Live and Local is more than a Tideline page, although the Tideline page advertises all of the shows on Cortes Island from Gorge Harbour Marina, Manson’s Hall, Gorge Hall and the Village Commons Music Series to pop-up independent shows. It is also more than the radio program, which is broadcast over CKTZ 89.5, FM shortly after 8:00 AM on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. 

According to Jemma Hicken, one of the best known personalities behind it:

“Live and Local is an umbrella program, run by Cortes Radio, that encompasses  the Live and Local page on Tideline, the Live and Local radio interviews that I’ve been mostly doing, also all of the promotion that we’ve been doing through Cortes Radio, social media, Tideline, all of the rest in terms of posters and the Village Commons Music Series as well.”

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Vanishing Voices: The Global At Risk Species Crisis and Cortes Island

Originally published, as part 6 of the Cortes Island Resonance series by the Cortes Community Radio Society.

Across the globe, the accelerating loss of biodiversity is sounding alarms among scientists, conservationists, and communities that recognize nature as more than scenery—it is the living fabric of our survival. The United Nations warns we are in the midst of an extinction crisis “at least tens to hundreds of times faster than the natural process of extinctions.”

In Canada, where biodiversity is heralded as a national treasure, action is falling gravely short—and British Columbia is a prime example. Despite being the most biologically diverse province in the country, B.C. still lacks legislation specifically designed to protect species at risk. 

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Gleanings from Lovefest 2025

Lovefest 2025 was at Linnaea Farm on Saturday August 9th. 

Cortes Currents arrived early and wandered through the crowd asking people about the festival and why they kept coming back. In the process, I also recorded a few short clips of music, asked one of the principal organizers about this year’s program and some people shared their recollections of the festival’s beginnings

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Sabina Leader Mense & the Wolves of Cortes: A Story of Coexistence

Originally published, as part 5 of the Cortes Island Resonance series by the Cortes Community Radio Society.

On the wild, forested shores of Cortes Island, a unique relationship has taken root—one of deep respect and mindful coexistence between humans and wolves. At the heart of this ongoing effort is Sabina Leader Mense, a biologist, educator, and champion of wild creatures whose vision helped shape a community-wide approach to living alongside apex predators.

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