Announcing 2021 Cultural and Responsive Neighbourhood Small Grants!

We are honoured to share nearly 30 grass-roots community projects that will be receiving Neighbourhood Small Grants this year! This time the focus was on culture with a special emphasis on Nuu-chah-nulth Culture. More than half the projects are led by Nuu-chah-nulth community members in their communities. There are also a number of general COVID-responsive projects. 

Another special element to this NSG cycle is that the Tofino-Ucluelet Culinary Guild is supporting food-related projects by providing in-kind grocery items in addition to the cash grants from CBT. As usual, the West Coast Community Resources Society, our community partner for creating the cheques for community members. NSG makes empowering, accessible opportunities for residents from all demographics rise up and make their communities more inclusive, vibrant places to live! It’s a joy to share the projects below. Check them out and reach out to colin@clayoquotbiosphere.org if you want to connect to a project leader and participate!

Fall 2021 Neighbourhood Small Grants

Rising Tide Nuu-chah-nulth Surf Team – Selena Lasoto,  Esowista/Tla-o-qui-aht
A neighbourhood feast on Esowista Beach for members of a Nuu-chah-nulth youth surf group. Learn more about this epic indigenous surfing project here: https://www.risingtidesurf.com/

YFN Culture Practice – Skylene Patrick, Hitacu/Yuułuʔiłʔatḥ
Cultural drumming and singing and dancing has not been happening in Hitacu due to COVID-19 and this grant will help bring it back (safely) during these challenging community times. 

Introduction to Carving – Dennis Hetu, Macoah/Toquaht
Carving workshop from Macoah carver Dennis for community members looking to try carving for the first time. The project will test the waters for Dennis’ dream to run a larger carving mentorship project.

Maaqtusiis Youth Hunting group – Charles Thomas, Ahoushat
This project will provide food and transportation for a cultural hunting trip for Ahousaht youth. Any meat they get will be distributed through the community in good reciprocal ways, but this is as much about being together out on the land as it is about getting food.

Cultural care packages (food) - Pat Charleson, Hot Springs Cove
Another youth hunting project, getting young community members out on the land, intergenerational connection and providing traditional food for the community. 

Pride Cupcakes – Marlo Firme, Ahousaht
Marlo is a teacher at Maaqtusiis High School – this is a youth led project that makes pride cupcakes for all Ahousaht community members on Valentines day. 

Ahousaht Pride Art Show – Nicole Dumas, Ahousaht
The pride club at Maaqtusiis High School wants to gather and create art. They will invite the community to make art too, then have a sweet exhibition around the community and do an art walk. The project has a large reach and great alignment with the other pride cupcake event from the Ahousaht Highschool!

Consent based cultural harvest – Rachel Dickens, Tofino
Rachel is a diabetes dietician with Nuu-Chah-Nulth Tribal Council and she plans (on her own time, not for work), to host a traditional foods harvesting workshop with a facilitator focusing on health and consent with the land.

Paddle Project – Darlene Dick, Ahousaht
The goal is to purchase supplies to make as many 3 foot dancing paddles as possible with community members. The paddles are used in cultural dancing. They will be used at potlatches and tribal journeys.

Community Giving – Mena Duncan, Ahousaht
This is a project to create Christmas hampers around the holiday season for Ahousaht families in need. It will provide food and good cheer during what can be a dark time of year. 

Little Music Connections – Rachel Hirst, Tofino
Music workshops for non-verbal children. The instruments would be stored at the community hall and owned by Tofino Parks and Rec during and after the project. This is one of the first NSG projects in our region ever to focus on persons with divergent abilities.

Ahousaht Warriors Volunteerism Unity – Tom Paul, Ahousaht
Field trip for a group of Ahousaht Youth up to Megin River cabin that was recently built to do volunteerism development work. 

Bread and Fried Bread – Annie George, Ty-Histanis/Tla-o-qui-aht
This is Annie’s fifth NSG project and all of her projects have been super successful and creative. She will be teaching community members how to make the comfort foods of bread and friend bread, sharing kinship and togetherness through the process.

Chamaapii (refers to balancing) – Nora Martin, Ty-Histanis/Tla-o-qui-aht
With the sale of the Tofino Botanical Gardens, Tla-o-qui-aht has an opportunity to start running healing initiatives on the property for indigenous community members on the coast. This project will support cultural healing initiatives to start immediately.

Every Child Matters – Elizabeth George, Ty-Histanis/Tla-o-qui-aht
Elizabeth will be organizing a group of people to work together to make gifts for residential school survivors. She’s done this in the past and known it to be a really positive thing for her community.

Sharing Grammas teaching for love of crafting – Lisa Sabbas, Ahousaht/Hesquiaht
This is a knowledge sharing project in a really large extended Nuu-chah-nulth family. The grant will support the creation of epic cultural handicrafts inspired by the family matriarch.

Alley Fest – Kevin Hawker, Tofino
Block party style event where residents whose homes back onto an alley across from Common Loaf in Tofino will gather to have a barbecue and have a critical conversation about the colonial practices of naming places. 

Mentor Apprentice Hours – Janey Thomas, Ahousaht
Opportunity to connect family members who are fluent in the Ahousaht language, and work on her own ability to speak it. She will then share her learnings with community. Janey says, the more she learns, the more she plans to share.

Food Care packages – Tom Campbell, Ahousaht
This project will support Tom in leading a food harvest, likely hunting ducks, and preparing it as a big feast/distributing to community.

Scorpion Queens – Joanna Humphries, Tofino
Women’s body-boarding group focused on bringing together women (especially new mothers) for healthy, empowering physical activity in nature, and connection between women lifting each other up and supporting trying new things. 

Weekly Baby Group for New Moms – Megan Burns, Ucluelet
Vancouver Island Health Authority has not been running its normal Family Ties (new mom group) program due to COVID, so new moms in Ukee have been gathering weekly to build community and support each other. The grant will provide healthy snacks and perhaps thank you gifts for guest speakers. 

Tofino Chess Masters 2022 – Susane Dyrchs
Chess tournament to bring together diverse age and demographics in the region. The Chess boards will be owned by Tofino Rec department after the event is done. 

Shoe Box Project – Kelly Deakin, Ucluelet
This project will help assemble packages for families in need to make fun crafts and gift-making together leading up to the holidays. Names of recipients will come from food bank, senior’s home, and Ukee COOP.

Indego Rodeo Natural Dye Workshop – Tara Warkentin, Tofino
Natural dye workshop hosted by Tara. Tara has been experimenting with different natural dyes and wants to share what she knows about dyeing fabric with natural pigments. The workshops will be done in COVID-responsive ways. 

Cards, Chakras, and Crystals – Loesha Newmyer, Tofino
Loesha will be offering a fun workshop for children to make crafts and play. This is the second time she has applied for an NSG for this in the past he project went really well! 

Youth-led beach cleanups – Kevin Bradshaw, Ucluelet
This is a youth-led project that will see local teenagers organizing and conducting beach cleanups around the Ucluelet area. 

Tofino Hospital Team Building – Emily Thicke, Tofino
Hospital staff have been highly challenged by the pandemic and the project would support an evening event for staff to bond and enjoy each other’s company outside the stressful hospital environment. 

Community Vocal Lessons – Selena Rogalsky, Tofino
Free singing lessons to have one-on one explorations of voice for 8 individuals. 

Ocean Park Holiday Lights – Jody Kirk, Tofino
This grant will support a Christmas light contest in Tofino’s Ocean Park neighbourhood. There’s a trophy from a previous grant and a local business will donate a prize. Money will support hot chocolate and snacks and carafe rental and solar lights, etc.
 

Celebrating Community: Our Most Successful Holiday Giving Campaign Yet!

January 14, 2025
This past December, the Clayoquot Biosphere Trust (CBT) collaborated with 23 local charities to promote our shared giving platform, with the goal of standing together to strengthen local communities and ecosystems. Throughout the month, participating charitable organizations helped amplify the initiative by sharing it through their communication channels. Meanwhile, donors explored causes they cared about and supported the region's diverse needs through the Holiday Giving Catalogue.

Join the Clayoquot Sound Biosphere Centre Local Trades Fair! (PDF) 11.38 MB

January 9, 2025
Join the Biosphere Centre Local Trades Fair! We are actively seeking local contractors and tradespeople for various aspects of construction, with a strong emphasis on mass timber construction, sustainable building practices, local material procurement, Indigenous engagement and participation and workforce development and training. Collaborate on this project to make a lasting community impact by contributing to a transformative facility that honors local First Nations and prioritizes sustainable building practices. Click here for more details!

Announcing the Fall 2024 Culture Neighbourhood Small Grants

January 9, 2025
We’re excited to share this list of grass-roots community projects that received a Culture Neighbourhood Small Grants (NSG) this past fall cycle. A total of 19 projects were funded in the region! Read more about the projects below from the Clayoquot Sound NSG program.

Giving Season is Here: Join the Clayoquot Biosphere Trust in Making a Difference

December 9, 2024
As the holiday season draws near, the spirit of generosity and compassion invites us to embrace the timeless tradition of giving. For those of us living on the beautiful west coast, this time of year serves as a reminder of the supportive communities and vibrant ecosystems we cherish. While we often celebrate the visible aspects of our region, we must also recognize the passionate social and environmental charities tirelessly working to uphold the vitality of the local landscapes and communities. 

Ucluelet Co-op and FCL Donate $300,000 to the Clayoquot Sound Biosphere Centre

December 3, 2024
Ucluelet Co-op and Federated Co-operatives Limited (FCL) are pleased to announce a joint donation of $300,000 to the Clayoquot Sound Biosphere Centre in Tofino, British Columbia. Ucluelet Co-op and FCL will each contribute $150,000 to this groundbreaking and innovative community project that will see the establishment of the Co-op Community Teaching Kitchen within the Centre.

What does the Living Wage mean to you?

November 19, 2024
With help from Living Wage BC, we’ve calculated the west coast’s living wage for 2024. Across the province and the country, living wages have increased in recent years, mainly because of the costs of rent and food.

Join the Clayoquot Sound Biosphere Centre Local Trades Fair! (PDF) 7.72 MB

November 15, 2024
Join the Biosphere Centre Local Trades Fair! We are actively seeking local contractors and tradespeople for various aspects of construction, with a strong emphasis on mass timber construction, sustainable building practices, local material procurement, Indigenous engagement and participation and workforce development and training. Collaborate on this project to make a lasting community impact by contributing to a transformative facility that honors local First Nations and prioritizes sustainable building practices. Click here for more details!

The Clayoquot Biosphere Trust's Regional Forum: Highlights and Insights from October 2024

November 4, 2024
On October 24, 2024, the Clayoquot Biosphere Trust brought together a mix of participants for a gathering on ƛaʔuukʷiʔatḥ (Tla-o-qui-aht First Nations) territory at TinWis. This gathering was all about fostering connections, sharing knowledge, and building strong, collaborative relationships. Attendees included representatives from First Nations, local governments, and organizations involved in environmental research, stewardship, restoration, and sustainable development.

Fostering Collaboration: BC's UNESCO Biospheres Gather in the Mount Arrowsmith Biosphere Region

October 9, 2024
In early October, the three BC-based UNESCO Biosphere Regions gathered for knowledge sharing within the Mount Arrowsmith Biosphere Region. Each Biosphere Regions works together on shared priorities including biodiversity conservation and climate action. By leveraging our unique strengths and priorities, we are able to collaborate and support each other’s efforts.  

Collaboration and Conservation: Highlights from Our Gathering at the Waterton Biosphere Region

October 9, 2024
Earlier this month, Janessa (Conservation Partnerships Coordinator) and Rebecca (Executive Director), joined colleagues from across Canada’s 19 UNESCO Biosphere Regions for a knowledge-sharing event within the Waterton Biosphere Region. This gathering was made possible thanks to support from Environment and Climate Change Canada and the Canadian Biosphere Regions Association. 

Koyah's Journey: From receiving CBT's Education Award to Studying Science at UBC

October 1, 2024
Koyah Morgan-Banke a Toquaht student who received CBT's Central Region nuučaan̓uł (Nuu-chah-nulth) Education Award in 2023 and is currently studying Sciences at the University of British Columbia to pursue a career in medicine. She has recently gotten in touch to share an update on her academic journey as well as her personal growth since receiving the award. 

Insights from our 2024 Intern: A Summer with the Clayoquot Biosphere Trust

September 25, 2024
This summer, we had the privilege of welcoming Zahur as CBT's 2024 summer intern, where they played a key role in supporting a variety of initiatives across the organization. Zahur brought fresh perspectives and a strong work ethic, making a meaningful impact on numerous projects. We’re incredibly grateful for their hard work and dedication! To learn more about Zahur's experience, read their blog post below.

New Signage: Welcoming You to the Haḥuułi of the Five Central Nuučaan̓uł (Nuu-chah-nulth) Nations

September 9, 2024
If you’ve driven from Port Alberni to the coast recently, you may have noticed a new sign 2km before you arrive at “the junction.” The sign welcomes you to the ḥaḥuułi of the five central region nuučaan̓uł (Nuu-chah-nulth) Nations — hiškʷiiʔatḥ (Hesquiaht), ʕaaḥuusʔatḥ (Ahousaht), ƛaʔuukʷiʔatḥ (Tla-o-qui-aht) Yuułuʔiłʔatḥ (Ucluelet), and tukʷaaʔatḥ (Toquaht) — where the biosphere region is designated. 

Announcing the 2024 Vital Grants

September 5, 2024
We are pleased to announce the recipients of the 2024 Vital Grants. This year, the CBT awarded $80,000 in funding to three inspiring projects in the region. These grants focus on addressing regional priorities and complex challenges that influence sustainability in the Clayoquot Sound Biosphere Region. They also aim to support meaningful, longer-term collaboration between organizations, communities, and cultures.

Announcing the Community Prosperity Fund Recipients

September 3, 2024
We are pleased to announce that $125,000 in funding was distributed to support three projects in the region through the Government of British Columbia’s Community Prosperity Fund. The Community Prosperity Fund is a $25 million investment from the Government of B.C. that advances poverty reduction and social inclusion. This fund is part of the Government of B.C.’s commitment to supporting the non-profit sector and empowering local communities to make decisions about what would most benefit them and their communities.

Announcing the 2024 Biosphere Research Award

August 29, 2024
We are excited to announce the recipients of the 2024 Biosphere Research Award. This year, the CBT awarded $20,000 in funding to Ha’oom Fisheries Society for their Coho Vitality Project.

Join our Team!

August 27, 2024
*This position has been filled!  The construction of the Clayoquot Sound Biosphere Centre creates an opportunity to exemplify the richness of the region’s cultures in a physical space, providing opportunities for all local artists to preserve culture and traditional knowledge, while creating accessible economic opportunities through art. The Art Program Coordinator engages community members and partners with the goal to plan, gather, and supervise the creation and installation of art in the future building in scale with available funding.

Newsletter Feature: World Network of Island and Coastal Biosphere Reserves/Regions

August 26, 2024
We’re honored to have been featured in the World Network of Island and Coastal Biosphere Reserves/Regions newsletter! This spotlight highlights the Clayoquot Sound Biosphere Center and the ongoing efforts in the region to reduce plastic pollution, alongside our collaborative stewardship initiatives. Read more!

Announcing the 2024 Arts & Culture Grants

August 20, 2024
We are excited to announce the recipients of the 2024 Arts and Culture grants. This year, eleven inspiring projects in our region have been awarded a total of $30,000 in funding. These grants focus on supporting arts and cultural activities that encourage inter-generational participation. They aim to promote cross-community and cross-cultural engagement, facilitate learning and teaching opportunities, and strengthen arts capacity through workshops, collaborations, and education. Additionally, these grants prioritize equity-seeking initiatives that address barriers to equal access and participation in the arts, focusing on BIPOC communities, LGBTQIA+ individuals, people with disabilities, and other marginalized groups. 

Announcing the 2024 Youth & Education Grants

August 9, 2024
We're excited to announce the recipients of the 2024 Youth and Education grants. This year, the CBT awarded over $52,000 in funding to eleven inspiring projects in the region. These grants aim to address urgent needs for youth, as highlighted in CBT's 2023 Vital Signs report. They focus on building capacity, providing education and training opportunities, and fostering connections among youth across communities in the Clayoquot Sound Biosphere Region. Additionally, the grants support youth-driven projects and promote education and discussion around multiculturalism, inclusiveness, and diversity.