She was in the Victoria-based newspapers back in the 1860s and she reappeared in modern news media in 2018 when a charitable organization heard about her story. The name Maggie Sutlej has appeared in newspapers and books since 1864, but that wasn’t her real name and it wasn’t the true story.
As the latest effort to help those who subsist off of the ocean, a new program aims to empower people seeking opportunity amid a challenging climate for the commercial fishing industry.
The goal of the Seafood Business Accelerator program is to provide self-employed fishers and farmers skills to become self-sufficient businesses and food providers. The initiative was announced in January, a partnership from Vancouver Island University’s Centre for Seafood Innovation and the BC Commercial Fishing Caucus, with additional funding from the Island Coastal Economic Trust.
Vancouver Island is known for its predatory wildlife, such as black bears, coastal wolves and cougars, that roam the rugged coastline. Amidst the coast many towns and villages sit in areas with high populations of predatory wildlife, making interactions with humans often inevitable, unless effective coexistence management is in place.
Almost twenty years ago, Gregory Charleson Jr. fell in love with a song that his father, Quuia Charleson, would sing to him. Love Your Creator was a Christian hymn that Quuia learned in residential school. At first, he sang it English.
Quuia said that his son would ask him to sing the song in their language, Hesquiaht. However, he could not speak the language fluently.
Gregory Jr. surprised his father, with the help of the late-elder Larry Paul, and a language teacher. They translated the prayer song from English into Nuu-chah-nulth.
Eight years after the Iwachis IR 3 Specific Claim was filed, Canada has settled with Tseshaht First Nation, awarding them $21 million in compensation for the 1913 unlawful expropriation and sale of Iwachis Indian Reserve.
The announcement was made July 29, 2022, in a joint statement from Tseshaht First Nation, British Columbia, and Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada. The funds were distributed to Tseshaht members on Jan. 13.
Elected Chief Ken Watts said the land was taken without consultation or compensation by the federal government.
The small and remote Nuu-chah-nulth village of Ethlateese is working towards relying less on fossil fuels for electricity thanks to a grant from the province’s Community Energy Diesel Reduction (CEDR) program.
The First Nation village, located in the Uchucklesaht Inlet near Barkley Sound, is home to about 25 residents.
Ethlateese is one of 12 First Nations communities throughout British Columbia receiving $7.1 million to develop alternative-energy projects and advance energy efficiency through the CEDR program, a CleanBC initiative.
Despite comprising a relatively small portion of the House of Commons, the federal NDP is in a position to “disproportionally” represent the interests of coastal residents and First Nations in Ottawa, says the party’s leader during a recent visit to Port Alberni.
A 12-year-old Tseshaht boy sustained broken bones and cuts after being struck by a vehicle at the Falls Road side of the Orange Bridge on Highway 4. The accident occurred about 4:30 p.m. on Jan. 11.
The incident raised safety concerns among the Tseshaht as this is the second time in less than a year that a child has been struck by a vehicle on the 3.3-kilometer section of highway that cuts through their main reserve.
With COVID-19, Influenza, and RSV circulating throughout the winter season, communities are combating the ‘tridemic,’ by encouraging folks to stay at home and self-isolate when they feel sick to protect their vulnerable populations.
Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation recently released a statement indicating that though it “isn’t in a state of emergency”, members are experiencing an increase in COVID-19, Influenza, and RSV. The statement serves as a reminder of ways to help prevent the spread of respiratory disease within the community.
With recent flooding, Ditidaht members cautiously and safely used the nearly complete bypass road to access grocery shops and attend medical appointments in the nearby towns of Port Alberni and Duncan.
“It worked quite successfully [and] made people very happy that they had the availability to go to Port Alberni or Duncan for their… medical trips [and] grocery shopping,” said Brian Tate, Ditidaht’s chief counsellor.