According to the World Meteorological Organization’s (WMO) Provisional State of Global Climate, 2023 is reported to be the warmest in the 174-year observational record, surpassing 2016 and 2020 records for warm temperatures.

For Ka:’yu:’k’t’h’/Che:k’tles7et’h’ First Nations (KCFN), the biggest impact from climate change is on their cultural ways of life through traditional food systems, said Katarina Duke, KCFN’s manager of Marine Conservation and Fisheries.

The 2023 Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council Annual General Meeting ended with an announcement from Ahousaht chief and council, stating that they plan to disengage from NTC’s health-specific programs so that the First Nation can directly manage these services on their own.

Elected Chief n̓aasʔałuk (John Rampanen) thanked the other Nuu-chah-nulth nations for standing together over the years and helping Ahousaht get on their feet. He said the nation will begin to transition into a new model of health delivery services in 2024.

In a continuation of a potlatch which started in October 2022, Jeff Cook, Yał luu a, invited people back to the Alberni Athletic Hall Dec. 9 to complete the business of transferring his ha’wilth seat. The 2022 potlatch was cut short due to circumstances beyond the control of the hosts, who promised they would finish their business on a better day. Dec. 9, 2023 was the day they completed their work for Huu-ay-aht’s Yaałuuwaštak̕amałtḥ house.

In July right before Pamela Webster was about to embark on the Tribal Journeys to Muckleshoot, Washington, she drove from Victoria to Nanaimo to look for a new vehicle at Harris Kia, leaving the dealership that day with a Chevy Impala and a financing contract.

After a summer of extreme drought, experts are concerned for conditions next year as they predict mild winter weather, with a November precipitation deficit.

Armel Castellan, a warning preparedness meteorologist with Environment and Climate Change Canada, says the last several weeks have seen less precipitation than a typical fall.

“There's actually going to be a deficit in November, which is the wettest time of year for the coast,” he said.

“We’re not going to hit our numbers this month,” added Castellan. “We'll have to see how December, January, February go.”

“We are literally in the bush, far away from paved roads and malls,” said a Ka:’yu:’k’t’h’/Che:k’tles7et’h’ First Nations member (KCFN) in a BC Achievement award video, but the nation, through its Tiičma Enterprises group of businesses is capitalizing on its remoteness.

On Nov. 5, a delegation from KCFN proudly accepted a BC Achievement Foundation award at a gala dinner held in Vancouver.

A new secure logistics and staging facility at Fair Harbour, in Kyuquot Sound, will allow Tiičma Fisheries to reduce its transportation costs and expand its shellfish aquaculture operations.

The project will be used to store equipment and gear, including aquaculture trays, lantern nets, spools of rope, floats, navigation buoys, a vessel on a trailer, tools and supplies.

Three Ditidaht First Nation community buildings at Nitinaht Lake will receive upgrades to improve accessibility, thanks to financial support from the Rick Hansen Fund.

The Rick Hansen Foundation (RHF) announced three B.C. First Nations would be beneficiaries of grants as part of Indigenous Disability Awareness Month. Ditidaht joins Malahat Nation and the Seabird Island Band as recipients of grants that will allow them to make accessibility improvements to community facilities. The RHF program’s goal is to improve accessibility for people facing mobility challenges.

Karen and Stephen Charleson, who have lived at Hesquiaht Harbour for decades, encountered a sight early this month they’ve never seen before: two bears feasting on what appeared to be the carcass of a grey whale.

Stephen had first spotted the massive carcass floating the area about a month prior. Then on Dec. 1 he noticed the bears eating it.

After seeing a precipitation deficit through November, the West Coast's wettest month, a ‘potent and impactful’ atmospheric river brings heavy rainfall to western Vancouver Island.

According to Environment Canada, up to 150 millimetres of rain is expected in some areas, with the storm expected to calm in the early hours of Tuesday, Dec. 5.

The River Forecast Centre issued a high streamflow advisory for the west coast of Vancouver Island.