Category Archives: Indigenous Nations

Threat To The Jewaka & Heakami Rivers

Editor’s note: The following program was broadcast on August three months prior to the Bute Inlet landslide. One of the reasons local historian Judith Williams gave for rejecting a proposed run of the river project in that region is “to run power out of there, you have to build these 400 foot wide corridors along the side of the Inlet  to place the things to hold the power lines. The Inlet avalanche is at a flicker of an eyelash anyway, and that will just encourage everything to just go down further into the Inlet itself and alter the chemistry there.” The Bute Inlet slide she predicted occured on Nov 28, 2019. 

More than a quarter of the planet’s population do not have access to sufficient clean water. While this problem is usually associated with developing nations, England and the United States are expected to face serious shortages in the decades to come. Meanwhile, British Columbia continues to give our water away for next to nothing. In this morning’s program, Judith Williams raises concerns about a private company coveting lands along the Jewaka & Heakami Rivers, just north of Bute Inlet, British Columbia.

Continue reading Threat To The Jewaka & Heakami Rivers

These Are My Words

As an immigrant to Canada, I was shocked to learn about the Canadian legacy of residential schools. I had no idea growing up in the U.S. that such things were happened and had happened just north of the border. The indigenous residential schools operated in Canada starting in the 1870s with the last one not closing until1996. Children as young as four were taken—often against the will of their families or with coercive techniques such as threatening jail time—and it is estimated that over 150,000 Indian, Inuit, and Métis children attended residential school. I was reminded that it is a  legacy that continues to shade aspects of Canadian culture and identity for all Canadians this year when I became a citizen. At the ceremony, the judge encouraged all of us new Canadians to make the act of reconciliation personal and spoke about how she was doing that in her life. 

Continue reading These Are My Words

Discovery Islands, Bute Inlet & Nootka Sound

 In this morning’s Cortes Currents, we continue with the audio from Jeanette Taylor’s recent talk at Manson’s Hall. In the previous episode she talked about Old Quadra Island. Now we explore the rest of the Discovery Islands, Bute Inlet & Nootka Sound.

Continue reading Discovery Islands, Bute Inlet & Nootka Sound

Klahoose Grant-In Aid Approved

By Roy L Hales

There were two key Cortes items at the Strathcona Regional District Board’s April 25 meeting. Chair Michele Babchuk said the SRD hopes to hold a final consultation meeting, regarding funding for first responders funding and the island’s two community halls, in early June. We may be looking at a referendum next Fall. Also, the Klahoose Nation’s Grant-in-Aid application was approved. 

Continue reading Klahoose Grant-In Aid Approved