Eat West Coast (EWC), is a CBT initiative that supports food security and sovereignty on the west coast. EWC bridges the biosphere and community foundation mandates by supporting local community-based responses to food system challenges. If you'd like to build capacity, find funding, get help with program planning, develop policies, or partnerships, don't hesitate to get in touch with our Eat West Coast Lead, Erika Goldt, at erika@clayoquotbiosphere.org!
Fall 2025 West Coast Food Highlights
Coastal Foods Roundtable
The Coastal Foods Roundtable allows those working in food production, distribution, and the food system across the west coast to gather twice a year to explore solutions to local food issues. The last meeting, on October 28th, focused on the Alberni Clayoquot Regional District’s emergency planning recommendations.
Eat West Coast, the District of Tofino, and the Better at Home Program through the Pacific Rim Hospice Society, provide meals prepared by local chefs and delivered to seniors at home or at the weekly Wednesday gatherings at the Tofino Community Hall. The pilot program is running in Tofino, but looking to expand to other communities too, so if you are interested for yourself, family, friends, or your community, don't hesitate to reach out!
Eat West Coast is part of the Island Food Hubs Program in partnership with Island Health, their regional dietitians, and eight community organizations leading food security efforts across the Island. These organizations collaborate on a wide range of projects, programs, policies, and advocacy for food access, nutrition, climate change, and Indigenous health to the Island, provincial, and federal levels.
Local Teaching Kitchen
A new exciting kitchen space at the upcoming Clayoquot Sound Biosphere Centre will uphold regional food security priorities, become a hub for food-sharing needs, and be a physical space with community ownership and access. It will focus on teaching spaces, small processing, preservation, and food sharing, within a large commercial kitchen and will have ample meeting spaces. Learn about the kitchen progress.
Join acclaimed author, photographer, and naturalist Adrian Dorst for the launch of his new book, The Wild West Coast. Through a collection of compelling photographs,
Adrian provides a window into Clayoquot Sound's mysterious rainforest and its wild valleys, as well as an elusive glimpse of many of its secretive inhabitants.
We’re proud to announce $186,000 in funding to support 10 community-led projects across the Clayoquot Sound Biosphere Region through Free to Play, a growing national movement to bring outdoor, child-led play back into the everyday lives of children.
We're looking to hire a student or recent graduate to help us with a regional climate adaptation planning project that will help improve resilience across two municipalities and three Nuu-chah-nulth communities.
The Leadership Vancouver Island West Coast Chapter is a dynamic place-based leadership experience coordinated by the Clayoquot Biosphere Trust in partnership with Vancouver Island University and is helping shape the next generation of leaders across the west coast.
Is your organization engaged in an emerging and important issue in the Clayoquot Sound region and would like to have a conversation with members of your community to find solutions?
We’re proud to share some wonderful news!
At the 2025 Tofino Business Excellence Awards, hosted by the Tofino Chamber of Commerce, the Clayoquot Biosphere Trust was honoured as the 2025 Non-Profit of the Year, and our Executive Director, Rebecca Hurwitz, was recognized as Business Leader of the Year.
We’re excited to share this list of grassroots community projects that received a Culture Neighbourhood Small Grants during the 2025 fall cycle. A total of 23 projects were funded in the region!
As we enter 2026, we’re reflecting on a powerful year of impact for the Clayoquot Biosphere Trust, one rooted in community leadership, innovation, and a shared commitment to a sustainable future for the region.
The 2025 Holiday Giving Catalogue highlighted what is possible when a community comes together with shared purpose.
Now in its fifth year, this was our most successful Holiday Giving Campaign to date. A total of $37,616 was raised for 22 local charities and over 10 community funds, which range from youth empowerment, food security, and environmental protection.
As we step into the new year, the Clayoquot Biosphere Trust (CBT) is proud to share a significant progress update on the Clayoquot Sound Biosphere Centre (CSBC) a community project grounded in local priorities, shaped by public input, and fueled by a shared commitment to a stronger, more resilient region.
Deep down in the basement of the Clayoquot Biosphere Trust office, you can find an archive containing hundreds of documents collected throughout the “war in the woods” era from the 1980s into the early 2000s. Think of it like the “paper-trail” of a nationally and globally significant regime shift from the colonial resource economy into the modern era. It’s an invaluable reference to a time when nuučaan̓uł (Nuu-chah-nulth) communities, tiny logging and fishing towns, municipal, provincial, and federal governments were all trying to figure out a sustainable way forward.
This past October, the Canadian Biosphere Regions Association (CBRA) and the Fundy Biosphere Region hosted a gathering to bring together representatives from Canada’s 19 Biosphere Regions. CBT was represented by Rebecca Hurwitz (Executive Director) and Janessa Dornstauder (Conservation Partnerships Coordinator).
On September 20th, we gathered to recognize a milestone: 25 years of the Clayoquot Sound UNESCO Biosphere Region. We are deeply grateful to everyone who joined us, community members, Elders, families, youth, and visitors. Your presence, spirit, and thoughtful attention brought the celebration to life and made it truly unforgettable. The energy on the school field was inspiring.
It was a day filled with appreciation, reflection, and joy as everyone came together to honour Indigenous knowledge and leadership, highlight 25 years of collaborative conservation and sustainable development, and look ahead with hope for the future.
We’re pleased to announce the recipients of the 2025 Vital Grants. This year, the CBT awarded $60,000 in funding to four 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. Read more!
We are pleased to announce the recipients of the 2025 Research & Environment grants. This year, the CBT awarded $20K in funding to four projects in the region. These projects address threats to key species and ecosystems and uplift nuučaan̓uł (Nuu-chah-nulth) ways of knowing. Efforts also focus on habitat conservation, restoration, and protection for ecologically and culturally important species and ecosystems. Read more!
We’re excited to announce the recipients of the 2025 Community Development grants. This year, eight inspiring projects in the region have been awarded over $36K in funding. These grants are dedicated to fostering accessible, inclusive, healthy, supportive, equitable, and sustainable communities, helping build a stronger and more united region. Read more!
We’re excited to announce the recipients of the 2025 Biosphere Research Awards! This year, the CBT has granted $38K to support three amazing projects. This funding stream supports initiatives that address key species or ecosystem threats, focus on reversing degradation trends, and promote conservation actions with broad application. Each program aligns with First Nations priorities and protocols, upholds the spirit of the UNESCO Biosphere designation, and shares research findings publicly. Read more!
This summer, CBT's Youth Intern, Braedon, has been supporting us in a wide range of projects across the organization and has also participated in initiatives hosted by other local non-profits. One of our goals was to offer him the opportunity to experience diverse types of work as well as acquire skills and knowledge in many different fields.
Discover Braedon’s experience joining Surfrider Pacific Rim and Tourism Tofino for their “Washed Up Wednesday” beach clean. Read on for his reflections.
Pani Ayoubizadeh from Ucluelet received the Clayoquot Sound Biosphere Education Award in 2022 and is currently studying science at the University of British Columbia, working toward her dream of becoming a cardiac surgeon. She has earned straight A’s every year so far, a testament to her incredible dedication and drive.
Recently, Pani reached out to share an update on her academic journey and the personal growth she has experienced since receiving the award. Read more about her story!
