Through the many challenges 2021 brought, First Nations demonstrated incredible leadership and resilience, working together and with partners to uplift youth, launch businesses, and steward their traditional territories. In our annual report, you’ll hear from community leaders who are managing Guardian programs, investing in ecotourism businesses, and transitioning to renewable energy. In 2021, Coast Funds’
Within the Great Bear Rainforest and Haida Gwaii, there are 11 “off grid” First Nation communities that aren’t connected to British Columbia’s electrical grid. These communities generate their electricity locally and many rely on diesel fuel for all or part of their energy needs. To gain a better understanding of these First Nations’ priorities, and
This is a contract role, managed and supported by Coast Funds’ Manager, Stewardship Funding. The successful candidate will work remotely, providing support to members of the Coast Solutions Task Group and Marine Finance Working Group. Looking for an opportunity to put your project management skills to work helping First Nations and their partners to protect
Through the many challenges 2021 brought, First Nations demonstrated incredible leadership and resilience, working together and with partners to uplift youth, launch businesses, and steward their traditional territories. In our annual report, you’ll hear from community leaders who are managing Guardian programs, investing in ecotourism businesses, and transitioning to renewable energy. In 2021, Coast Funds’
Outside of the city of Courtenay, the K’ómoks Guardians are working with Project Watershed Society to restore a former sawmill site, turning the land back into a saltmarsh estuary. Once restoration is complete, the estuary will connect with the Hollyhock Flats and provide quality habitat for fish, birds, and native plants. K’ómoks First Nation has
Coast Funds is pleased to welcome two new staff members: Melissa Sevigny, Executive Assistant, and Stephanie Butler, Communications Manager, who joined the team in recent months. With the addition of Melissa and Stephanie’s skills and capacity, Coast Funds remains well positioned to continue providing valued program and funding supports to First Nations in the Great
After nine years with the organization, Coast Funds CEO Brodie Guy will depart on April 15 for a new role, joining Island Coastal Economic Trust as their incoming CEO. “On behalf of our board and staff team, we want to thank Brodie for his leadership and impact over the past decade with Coast Funds,” said
Through a first-of-its-kind conservation financing model, First Nations in the Great Bear Rainforest and Haida Gwaii are demonstrating how a conservation economy can protect forest ecosystems while creating jobs and providing clarity for forestry operations. How did we get here? Last week, Coast Funds’ founding partners, board Chair, and CEO were invited to share learnings
This month, Coast Funds was featured in Securing Sustainable Financing for Conservation Areas, a newly-published World Bank and World Wildlife Fund guide to project finance for permanence (PFP). The PFP model is designed to create the conditions needed for permanent, sustainable conservation of globally important ecosystems and is being increasingly considered around the world to
Coast Funds is pleased to announce that Ross Dixon has joined our team as Director, Development. Ross will work in service of First Nations governments to build their endowed funds with Coast Funds to sustainably finance their stewardship authorities.
Coast Funds is pleased to welcome two widely respected and diversely experienced new directors to our board. Angela Wesley and David Egan were appointed by Members to the board of directors on July 7, 2021.
Just as Xaayda Gwaay.yaay Haida Gwaii is once again welcoming visitors, the Haida House at Tllaal has announced the highly anticipated opening of six ocean view cabins for late July.
Coast Funds’ board of directors is pleased to announce Dallas Smith has been elected to the role of Chair. Smith has been actively involved with Coast Funds’ since its inception and has spent most of his career working to strengthen the well-being of coastal First Nations people.
Coast Funds’ CFO, Eddy Adra, will be speaking at an upcoming webinar on best practices in mission aligned investing and asset management for conservation trust funds.
Follow along with the amazing stories unfolding in the Great Bear Rainforest and Haida Gwaii. Sign up to receive the Talking Stick email.
The Hith’alis Agreement, a partnership between the B.C. government, KHFN and Coast Funds, provides $721,000 to enhance stewardship and management activities in KHFN territory in the Broughton Archipelago.
The Nisg̱a’a Village of Gitwinksihlkw is investing in and developing their tourism infrastructure to bring people into their community and keep them coming back. In late 2020, they opened the Welcome House Café and Gift Shop, operated by entrepreneur Sally Nyce.
Coast Funds’ 2020 annual report highlights First Nations’ investments in healthy and thriving communities and ecosystems throughout the Great Bear Rainforest and Haida Gwaii.
An upcoming documentary by Nuxalk filmmaker Banchi Hanuse shines a spotlight on the sputc eulachon—a fish essential to the cultural and physical well-being of the Nuxalk—and features research by Coast Funds’ director and Nuxalk scientist Ts’xwiixw Megan Moody.
The International Funders for Indigenous Peoples released a landscape scan report that brings together knowledge about Indigenous-led funds and the wisdom of Indigenous leaders in philanthropy.
Coast Funds’ board of directors today announced that Huux Percy Crosby has tendered his resignation as Chair and is stepping down from the board of directors. We thank Percy for his many contributions to Coast Funds and his dedication to the coastal First Nations we serve.
Homalco Wildlife and Cultural Tours (HWCT) announced an exciting new expansion for their business coming this spring including a new Whales, Wildlife and Culture Tour.
The winter 2021 edition of Talking Stick features the Nawalakw Healing Society and Culture Project, the renewable energy projects of Dzawadaʼenuxw First Nation and Kitasoo/Xai’xais First Nation, and introduces Trevor Loke as our new Director, Partnership Development.
Coast Funds’ CEO co-authors latest Issues in Ecology, a publication released by the Ecological Society of America. The issue explores how privately financed conservation projects can generate both financial returns and positive conservation outcomes.
First Nations’ stewardship departments are leading efforts to ensure salmon populations are managed with the best available data.
Na̲nwak̲olas Council recently announced its member First Nations had secured the cooperation of the forestry industry to sustainably steward wilkw/ k’wa’x̱ tłu large cultural cedar trees in their territories.
Recognizing the Indigenous leadership central to our history and governance, along with a range of achievements by First Nations and Coast Funds since our inception, the Conservation Finance Alliance featured Coast Funds as a case study in its new global report on conservation funds.
The member Nations of Na̲nwak̲olas Council have been enhancing their research capabilities to best manage and steward their territories, which include the diverse habitats of grizzly bears. Part of that work involves investing in and developing a research partnership with the BearID Project, a project that is developing bear facial recognition software.
Coast Funds, along with a group of investors representing approximately $1.1 trillion in assets under management, congratulated the B.C. Government on its passage of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act, an important first step in recognizing Indigenous Rights and strengthening the path to self-determination.
Tlowitsis First Nation publishes report highlighting important archeological sites throughout their territories. The work deepens cultural understanding and ensures protection of these places from human and natural disturbances.
A recent McKinsey & Company report examines the significant benefits of protecting our natural world. Coast Funds contributed a case study to the report which explores one of the first “large-scale, multi-party Project Finance for Permanence (PFP) initiatives”—the Great Bear Rainforest Agreements.
Great Bear Scallops, owned-and-operated by Metlakatla Nation, recently received the 2020 Sustainability Award from BC Food and Beverage. The award was given in recognition of the company’s leadership in sustainability and contributions to helping the environment.
Watch a new video that highlights the outcomes of five years of marine plan implementation by First Nations on the North Pacific Coast, in partnership with the Province of BC.
Coastal First Nations and the Council of the Haida Nation are both undertaking new initiatives to protect the coastlines of their territories.
Coastal First Nations (CFN) has announced a new Guardian Watchmen Strategic Plan that outlines the shared goals and objectives of CFN Guardian programs and presents eight Strategic Priorities to sustain and enhance their work into the future.
Xwémalhkwu Nation has acquired a building at a remote camp near Bute Inlet, an important first step in re-establishing the Nation’s roots in its traditional territory.
Aboriginal Peoples Television Network recently aired a feature story on APTN National News about Kitasoo/Xai’xais Nation’s Klemtu Hydropower facility – one of the two Indigenous-owned clean energy projects funded in part through the first round of funding made available under the Renewable Energy for Remote Communities Program.
A new guide by the Reconciliation and Responsible Investment Initiative outlines how Indigenous trustees and other investors can ensure that their investments align with their community’s values and long-term vision.
Coast Funds, Dzawada̱ʼenux̱w First Nation, Kitasoo/Xai’xais First Nation, and the Province of British Columbia announced over $25 million in new First Nations’ investments to transition coastal communities from dependence on fossil fuel-powered electricity to sustainable, locally powered renewable energy systems, eliminating over 175,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions.
News Release: The Kwikwasut’inuxw Haxwa’mis First Nation (KHFN) has purchased Pierre’s at Echo Bay Lodge & Marina, located on Gilford Island in the beautiful Broughton Archipelago and in the heart of KHFN’s traditional territory.
A new article by CBC Unreserved highlights how growing concern about the fate of Western Red Cedars has prompted First Nations in northeastern Vancouver Island to develop new policies to help protect them for future generations.
A new interactive educational resource that connects children across Canada to the value of the ocean and the blue economy highlights the traditional ocean harvesting practices and technologies of coastal B.C. First Nations, including the history and significance of oolichan harvesting by the Nisg̱a’a Nation throughout history.
Haíɫhzaqv Elder and Knowledge Keeper Hilistis Pauline Waterfall shares her personal story of self-isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic, and explains why living through the current health crisis is a familiar experience to many First Nations Peoples.
The Haida Gwaii Management Council—a joint decision-making body that includes equal representation from the Haida Nation and the Province of B.C.—has determined an Allowable Annual Cut of 804,000 cubic metres for the Haida Gwaii Management Area.
Coast Funds’ 2019 Annual Report reflects on the work that First Nations are undertaking in collaboration with Coast Funds, through new investments that further healthy and thriving communities and ecosystems throughout the Great Bear Rainforest and Haida Gwaii.
A new outreach booklet created by the Metlakatla Nation provides a comprehensive guide to First Nations on how to measure the far-reaching impacts of resource development on their territories.
Coast Funds is striving to uphold the First Nations we serve amidst the challenges we all face with the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. On behalf of Coast Funds board and staff, we are wishing you and your loved ones health, safety, and stability in this precarious time.
La’goot Spencer Greening, an Indigenous scholar from the Gitga’at Nation, draws on his personal experiences as an Indigenous hunter and angler to highlight the value and effectiveness of Indigenous harvesting practices in developing a sustainable path forward.
Our mission is to partner with First Nations in achieving their goals for conservation, stewardship, and economic development in the Great Bear Rainforest and Haida Gwaii.
A new feature in Canadian Geographic showcases how Homalco Wildlife & Cultural Tours has expanded their successful business model by offering visitors a new way to experience Xwémalhkwu (Homalco) culture – while also providing the Nation with an opportunity to heal.
Coast Funds announced the Renewable Energy for Remote Communities program with the Province of British Columbia today. This initiative, launching in early 2020, will see $7.9 million in new investments made with coastal First Nations towards transitioning their remote communities’ fossil fuel-dependent electrical grids to renewable energy sources.
With the signing of Bill 41, BC will become the first province in Canada to legally implement the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
It is with heavy hearts and everlasting gratitude that Coast Funds board and staff learned of the passing of our friend, Mulidzas Curtis Wilson. Mulidzas was a loving father and partner, a dedicated community leader, and an accomplished artist.
Over 2,000 people from across the coast and as far away as Aoteroa (New Zealand) joined the Haíɫzaqv (Heiltsuk) Nation in celebrating the historic opening of the first ƛiác̓i (Big House) in the Nation’s territory in 120 years.
The fall 2019 issue of Talking Stick features West Sea Otter Water Taxi in Rivers Inlet, Bella Guest Cabins in Haíɫzaqv territory, and the appointment of three First Nations women to Coast Funds’ board of directors.
First Nations in the Great Bear Rainforest and Haida Gwaii, and across the entirety of what is now called Canada, have been stewarding their lands and waters for millennia. The pivotal work of Coastal First Nations in laying the groundwork for Indigenous Guardian programs was featured in a recent article by Sierra Magazine.
Coast Funds announced today the appointment of three First Nations women to its board of directors: Christina Gray, nominated by the North Coast Skeena Stewardship Society; Ts’xwiixw Megan Moody, nominated by the Central Coast Indigenous Resource Alliance; and Kii’iljuus Barbara Wilson, nominated by the Council of the Haida Nation.
Coast Funds today announced new shareholder proxy voting guidelines that set a new standard with specific and directive proxy voting guidelines to ensure recognition of Indigenous Rights by the boards of publicly traded companies.
Coastal First Nations has signed a Fisheries Resources Reconciliation Agreement with the Government of Canada. The agreement will enhance First Nations’ access to existing commercial fishing licenses and quota, and deliver an enhanced role in fisheries governance.
Leaders of the Haíɫzaqv Nation and the Government of Canada signed a groundbreaking agreement that provides an investment of $36.96 million over three years in four Haíɫzaqv priority “House Post” areas, and additional funding for fisheries management, including increased training, enforcement authority and joint management of crab and salmon fisheries in Haíɫzaqv Territory.
Nawalakw Healing Society holds a vision of hope for Chief Maxwiyalidizi K’odi Nelson. Chief Maxwiyalidizi’s vision is that Nawalakw will serve as a catalyst for social change and become the first place on earth where Kwak’wala is again spoken immersively.
Over the last decade, First Nations in the Great Bear Rainforest and Haida Gwaii have created a new conservation economy that links a healthy environment with the prosperity and well-being of their communities, according to a report released today by Coast Funds.
Coast Funds is working to align our investment strategies with our values, including recent work to conduct a proxy voting audit. Responsible investment has emerged as one of the many paths organizations can take to advance reconciliation.
Na̲nwak̲olas Council member Nations have developed a strategy to protect the largest and most culturally significant cedars in their territories. The work of the Council was featured in a recent video and article by Hakai Magazine.
A new video series from Connected Communities BC explores place-based and identity-rich stories showcasing how connectivity can and is changing the way communities operate.
The Council of the Haida Nation (CHN) and communities on Haida Gwaii have worked collaboratively for many years to manage a community forest based on shared principles of stewardship and community benefits and aim to have the forest’s tenure allocated in the coming year.
A business case commissioned by Coastal First Nations and Nature United showed that Guardian Watchmen programs return a 10-to-1 return on investment.
Coast Funds’ newly released 2018 annual report highlights the impacts Indigenous-led conservation finance in the Great Bear Rainforest and Haida Gwaii.
New federal standards for Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) in Canada prohibit industrial activities within the areas, including oil and gas activities, mining, dumping and bottom trawling. The new standards also ban ocean mining and ocean dumping in MPAs.
The Haisla Fisheries Commission released its 2018/19 annual report detailing the wide range of activities its crew conducts over the course of a year. From stock assessments to food fish distribution, it’s all in a year’s work.
The Guardian Watchmen programs that collaborate through the Ha-ma-yas Stewardship Network are working to define, identify, verify, and highlight potential protection measures for the rich, cultural and heritage resources within member-nations’ territories.
First Nations in the Great Bear Rainforest and Haida Gwaii are leading the revitalization of their economies and ensuring resilience through diversification. With support from Coast Funds, First Nations have invested over $266 million into the diversification of their economies.
From a scallop farm in Prince Rupert to an oceans forum on Haida Gwaii, First Nations are innovating unique approaches to stewardship and economic development throughout the Great Bear Rainforest and Haida Gwaii.
A new educational website immerses students in learning about the people, plants, and animals of Great Bear Rainforest from the comfort of their classrooms. The Great Bear Rainforest Education & Awareness website explores the rich human cultures, biological diversity, stewardship endeavours of the region.
In the fall of 2017, 13 journalists from across North America descended on the Great Bear Rainforest. Their journey was part of the Great Bear Institute organized by the Institute for Journalism and Natural Resources (IJNR).
A feature-length documentary about the Great Bear Rainforest and the First Nations whose territories span the region premieres in Vancouver on February 12, 2019 and opens to the public in four Canadian cities—Vancouver, Victoria, Toronto, and Sudbury—on February 15.
Updates from Coast Funds Welcome to the winter 2018/19 edition of Talking Stick, a magazine that showcases the stewardship, conservation science, and sustainable development initiatives led by First Nations throughout the Great Bear Rainforest and Haida Gwaii. Download the print issue: Winter 2018/19 This issue features two projects that reconnect First Nations with their culture by renewing
An Indigenous ecotourism summit organized by Tides Canada in November 2018 explored the many long-lasting benefits the sector can provide to communities.
As a director and board chair for Coast Funds, Merv Child has guided the organization to provide the highest possible standards of support for the First Nations in the Great Bear Rainforest and Haida Gwaii.
In 2018, Coast Funds’ board of directors approved $4.8 million to support 23 First Nations-led projects. Each endeavour is making a big impact on the well-being of First Nations communities and showing the world that a sustainable economy is vitally linked to conservation efforts.
Randy Frank is making a big impact on the territory of the K’ómoks First Nation. Frank is both a Guardian Watchman and one half of the team erecting Guardian totem poles throughout K’ómoks territory.
Kitasoo Stewardship Authority and the Kitasoo/Xai’xais Guardian Watchmen busy patrolling their territories, and tracking oversoaked crab traps.
Author Peter Wohlleben is teaming up with Kwiakah First Nation for a segment of a documentary based on his best-selling book, The Hidden Life of Trees.
A new feature in Canadian Geographic showcases the work of the Nuxalk Nation’s Guardian Watchmen program and ancestral governance project.
Na̲nwak̲olas Council has selected Wally Eamer as its nominee on Coast Funds’ board of directors. Eamer has served as a Coast Funds director since 2013 and will continue his current term, shifting into the role of Na̲nwak̲olas nominee effective December 5, 2018.
Haisla Nation is restoring important riparian ecosystems, thus safeguarding important salmon habitat and providing employment for Haisla members.
After being displaced from their territories, the Tlowitsis Nation has searched for a new place to call home. In spring 2018 that search ended as the Nation purchased a 635-acre property outside Campbell River.
The Kitasoo/Xai’xais Nation is expanding its stewardship operations in the Great Bear Rainforest with the grand opening of a new stewardship office and accommodations in Klemtu.
The Great Bear Rainforest framework could play a role in protecting the Leuser Ecosystem, the last place on Earth where rhinoceros, elephants, orang-utans and tigers all co-exist in the wild.
Gwa’sala-’Nakwaxda’xw Nations will soon start building a Big House across from their reserve at Tsulquate, adjacent to Port Hardy on northern Vancouver Island.
Journalist Ian Gill examines the Haíłzaqv Nation’s seasonal herring harvest that took place in spring 2018 and the Nation’s efforts to secure control and management of the fishery.
The fall 2018 issue of Talking Stick features Gwa’sala-‘Nakwaxda’xw Nations’ economic development corporation, Nisga’a Nation’s oolichan research project and how First Nations are developing highly skilled workforces.
The Southern Dakelh Nation Alliance, including Ultkatcho First Nation, signed a reconciliation agreement with the provincial government.
This year marks 25 years since the Council of the Haida Nation and the Government of Canada signed the Gwaii Haanas Agreement. The agreement was the first of its kind and was constructed without compromising Haida rights and title.
Coast Funds’ Board of Directors is pleased to announce Percy Crosby has been elected to the role of Chair.
In early June 2018, the Nisg̱a’a Lisims Government opened the doors of the newly-renovated Vetter Falls Lodge, inviting visitors to share the natural beauty and cultural resources of the Nass Valley.
‘Waadlux̲an KilG̲uhlG̲a (Talking About Everything), a land-sea-people management plan, aims to protect Gwaii Haanas’ ecological and cultural values while also ensuring that livelihoods are protected.
The first ever Reconciliation Framework Agreement for Bioregional Oceans Management and Protection was announced today by Marilyn Slett, Chief Councillor of the Heiltsuk Nation and President of Coastal First Nations, and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Through their Coast Funds investments, First Nations have established 17 Guardian Watchmen and regional monitoring programs in the Great Bear Rainforest and Haida Gwaii. These programs monitor 4.1 million hectares of land and water, combining traditional stewardship practices with modern science and regional monitoring.
Chief Councillor Marilyn Slett of Heiltsuk Nation has been appointed co-chair of a new Wild Salmon Advisory Council. The Council, announced by the BC government on June 15, is tasked with providing insights and guidance on how best to protect wild salmon and maximize its value.
