Celebrating Community Impact: Nominated for Non-Profit of the Year

As we enter 2026, we’re reflecting on a powerful year of impact for the Clayoquot Biosphere Trust (CBT), one rooted in community leadership, innovation, and a shared commitment to a sustainable future for the region. 

Established in 2000, CBT is Canada’s only organization that is both a community foundation and a UNESCO biosphere region. For 25 years, we have paired place-based action with a global framework, advancing the UN Sustainable Development Goals through education, research, grantmaking, and collaboration. Sustainability, reconciliation, and community wellbeing sit at the heart of everything we do. 

2025 was a year of momentum. 

Last year, CBT awarded $1.5 million in community grants, supporting youth leadership, food security, arts and culture, environmental stewardship, climate action, and community health across the West Coast. These investments were guided by participatory decision-making, with more than 60 volunteers serving on grant committees and advisory groups ensuring local priorities drive local solutions. 

We also convened a region-wide Vital Conversation on climate, bringing together community members, local governments, Nations, and partners to explore climate adaptation, resilience, and shared responsibility. Through our Vital Signs program and ongoing community dialogue, CBT continues to provide trusted data and neutral space to inform regional decision-making and long-term planning. 

In 2025, we advanced work on the Clayoquot Sound Biosphere Centre, a transformational project designed to serve as a hub for education, research, cultural exchange, and economic diversification supporting youth, innovation, and year-round resilience in the region. We are excited to have secured our building permit and $12.5M in funding. We also continued to steward 18 community funds, enabling donors, families, and organizations to invest directly in the causes they care about most. 

As a community foundation since 2012, CBT has focused on growing social capital and strengthening the systems that support healthy ecosystems, vibrant cultures, and a diversified local economy. To date, we have invested over $5.5 million into community-led initiatives work made possible by strong governance, Nation-led leadership, and partnerships grounded in trust. 

That’s why we are incredibly honoured to share that CBT has been nominated for the Tofino Chamber of Commerce’s Non-Profit of the Year Award—our first-ever Chamber Excellence Award nomination. This recognition reflects not just an organization but a collective effort by volunteers, donors, partners, and community members who believe in collaboration, care, and long-term impact. 

We are also incredibly proud to share that Rebecca Hurwitz, Executive Director of the CBT, has been nominated for Business Leader of the Year. For more than two decades, Rebecca has led with integrity, empathy, and a deep belief that together we are stronger. Her inclusive, community-first leadership has helped guide CBT’s evolution as both the steward of the UNESCO Biosphere Region and the regional community foundation.  

Thank you for being part of this journey. 

Chamber Excellence Awards: February 26 
Voting: Open now via the Tofino Chamber of Commerce 
? tofinocc.awardify.io/vote