Showcasing what’s possible by Indigenous-owned businesses was the main message behind the second annual Cims Fest at Chims Guest House on Tseshaht territory.

Naomi Nicholson and her husband Ed hosted the event for the second consecutive year at their property on Aug. 6. The couple, who own Chims Guest House at 6890 Pacific Rim Hwy., want to bring Indigenous and non-Indigenous people together to build a relationship through a shared cultural experience. The festival showcased Indigenous artwork and vendors, a fashion show, traditional food, storytelling, song and dance.

When Sanford Williams returns to his home at the south edge of Nootka Island each summer, there is little time to waste. The carver has made a practice to starting work at 6 in the morning, usually finishing by 7 or 8 in the evening.

With more than 40 years of experience of crafting with the knife, Williams knows just what lies before him when he returns to Yuquot each June. The period usually lasts three months before he returns to his wife Marlana in Hope.

The importance of reading the fine print became blatantly clear to Arni Robinson, after he was almost stuck with a payment he didn’t negotiate for while recently buying a new electric car.

For years the retired commercial fisherman and his wife have pondered getting an electric car, but it wasn’t until recently that prices became reasonable enough to make the transition viable.

The Huu-ay-aht and Western Forest Products unveiled a design this week to be placed throughout their partnership company, with attention to a more holistic approach to using natural resources than what has been practiced in the past.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the next phase of Canada’s Oceans Protection Plan on July 19. It comes with a commitment to add $2 billion over nine years.

This builds on the $1.5 billion that’s been directed towards the program, which was launched in 2016.

Established to strengthen the protection of Canada’s coasts and wildlife, the Oceans Protection Plan is being labelled as a “Canadian success story” by the prime minister’s office (PMO).

Construction for a much-needed new bypass road will begin this summer for the Ditidaht First Nation to allow community members in and out of the village during bad floods.

For decades, the Ditidaht First Nation have endured chronic flooding of a portion of the Carmanah Mainline that runs parallel to the Nitnat River. This is the main access into and out of the Ditidaht Village of Malachan at Nitinaht Lake.

Today the Pope concludes his five-day visit to Canada, leaving behind mixed feelings among First Nations communities after he apologised for the pain caused by the residential school system.

Pope Francis made stops in Edmonton, Iqaluit and Quebec City July 24-29, addressing former residential school students and Indigenous leaders at each event. His visit follows a meeting with First Nations, Métis and Inuit representatives at the Vatican on April 1, when he recognised the “deplorable behaviour” of Catholics who abused children while working at residential schools.

Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation and the Yuułuʔiłʔatḥ Government will be introducing the Alberni Clayoquot Regional District’s (ACRD) residential roadside waste collection service in their communities this fall. 

There are currently six large containers placed throughout the First Nation communities, which residents can use to dispose of their household waste. This means that there is no waste separation.

Nuu-chah-nulth representatives can expect more meetings with high-level DFO officials in the future, according to the head of a $647-million federal initiative designed to turn the tide of Pacific salmon declines.

This was the reassuring message from Sarah Murdoch, senior director of the Pacific Salmon Strategy Initiative, a large-scale project launched a year ago to “stem historic declines in key Pacific salmon stocks and rebuild these species to a sustainable level,” states Fisheries and Oceans Canada.