Category Archives: Indigenous Nations

Environment, Indigenous Nations

Tseshaht prohibits all fires on reserve and Broken Group Islands

By Nora O’Malley, Ha-Shilth-Sa, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Port Alberni, B.C. – BC Wildfire Service may have flip-flopped on a May 7 campfire ban in the Coastal Fire Centre, but Tseshaht First Nation in Port Alberni is holding the proverbial burn line.

The nation is prohibiting all fires on reserve lands and the Broken Group Islands until further notice. Their decision is supported by Hupačasath First Nation and the City of Port Alberni, who are also maintaining a complete fire ban.

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Indigenous Nations History

Fishing net defies time, resurfaces 2,000 years later in Tsawwassen

By Radha Agarwal, Delta Optimist, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

A rare 2,000-year-old fishing net unearthed in Tsawwassen is undergoing conservation at the First Nation’s repository, providing a window into the coastal life that flourished in the region millennia ago.

“It really highlights the deep cultural importance of fishing for our people. It’s a privilege to be able to care for and hold a piece of our ancestors’ history and perpetuity,” said Tia Williams, Archaeology Coordinator at the Tsawwassen First Nation (TFN).

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Indigenous Nations

‘There needs to be some sense of balance’: Cattlemen’s Association president talks DRIPA challenge

Energeticcity.ca, Local Journalism Initiative

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — The president of the B.C. Cattlemen’s Association (BCCA) spoke to Energeticcity.ca about potential roles the organization would seek regarding a challenge to the province’s Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (DRIPA).

A press release issued on Wednesday, May 6th, says the BCCA will seek intervenor status – a party acting on behalf of individuals or an organization – in the case surrounding the Pender Harbour and Area Residents Association.

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Animals, Indigenous Nations

Upper Nicola program a ‘gold standard’ in effort to save B.C.’s burrowing owls

By Aaron Walker, Windspeaker, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

A decade after the first burrowing owls were released onto its reserve lands, the Upper Nicola Band is marking what leaders and partners describe as a rare conservation success in a province where the species remains on the brink.

On April 22, community members, knowledge keepers, and conservation partners gathered on the Douglas Lake reserve to release six more captive-raised burrowing owls as part of an ongoing recovery effort that has quietly become one of the most productive breeding sites for the species in British Columbia.

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Indigenous Nations, Politics

The Squamish Land Back Task Force

The District of Squamish and Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation) have been undertaking joint initiatives – on flood protection, emergency planning, and forest governance – for decades. On March 18 they went a step further, announcing the launch of the Land Back Task Force to explore how public lands can be returned or co-managed with the Squamish First Nation. 

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