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The marine territory of the W̱SÁNEĆ in the Southern Strait of Georgia is home to more than 3,000 species. These include the world’s largest octopus, 100-year-old rockfish, vast schools of herring and salmon, millions of sea birds, as well as seals, sea lions, dolphins and whales, including the iconic southern resident killer whales. Many of these species are at risk of extinction, with only 73 southern resident killer whales remaining and rapidly declining herring populations. Incredibly, B.C. is still one of the only provinces in Canada without legislation dedicated to protecting and recovering species at risk The proposed National Marine [...]

The WLC is pleased to welcome Joni Olsen to the team! Learn more about Joni and how her expertise and training will help fulfill the W̱SÁNEĆ Leadership Council’s mandate. Click play to view the short interview, or read the transcript below. https://youtu.be/rhGcS6WAhZE Interviewer: Can you please tell us your name and a bit about your background? My name is Joni Olsen. I am from the Tsartlip First Nation and I have lived here my whole life. My background initially was in small business ownership. For 15 years now I have been elected counsel for the Tsartlip First Nation, so I [...]

Important Updates To Services & Supports For W̱SÁNEĆ Community Members During COVID-19 In times like these, our priority is to do everything we can to keep our families, friends, coworkers, and team members safe.  To be successful in reducing further impacts of COVID-19, it’s critical each community member has access to accurate and up to date information regarding services, best practices and supports available during this time.  The Chiefs and Councils of each community and the W̱SÁNEĆ Leadership Council are working hard to ensure that supports for our most vulnerable community members are available while protecting the health [...]

The Clam Garden Restoration Project has reclaimed W̱SÁNEĆ knowledge, improved ecosystems and provided the W̱SÁNEĆ Nation with additional funding. From 2014 to 2019, Parks Canada, the W̱SÁNEĆ Nation and the Hul’q’umi’num Nations participated in the Clam Garden Restoration project.  Clam gardens are ancient sites along shorelines in W̱SÁNEĆ territory that Indigenous people tended for thousands of years to enhance the production of clams and related sea creatures. Clams were an important source of protein for W̱SÁNEĆ people. The Clam Restoration project spent 5 years working to restore clam gardens in W̱SÁNEĆ territory. In addition to improving the ecology [...]

Community Profile: W̱SÁNEĆ's John Etzel Jr. and his parents on competitive lacrosse, rapping for hope, and excelling in spite of discrimination.   John Etzel Jr. is one of the many talented W̱SÁNEĆ youth excelling in their athletic endeavors, both locally and across Canada.  Since he started playing competitive lacrosse at 12 years old, his career trajectory has been nothing short of incredible. In just a few short years, John has developed a reputation for being “a speedy transition and face-off specialist and perennial All-Star” that is expected to “continue to blow by the competition.”  John earned his reputation for [...]

The WLC stands with Wet’suwet’en Hereditary Chiefs, calls on Feds, Province to uphold UNDRIP, come to a peaceful resolution. February 18th, 2020 -  The WLC--representing the Tsartlip, Tsawout and Tseycum First Nations--sent an open letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Premier John Horgan urging them to make good on their commitments to reconciliation and UNDRIP.  As the land defenders and their allies grow in fierce opposition to the $6 billion dollar, 670-kilometer fracked gas pipeline through Wet’suwet’en jurisdiction, the WLC calls for a peaceful resolution to an increasingly volatile situation. The W̱SÁNEĆ Leadership Council (WLC) stands with [...]

Community Profile: Tsawout’s YELḰÁTŦE (Rob Clifford), Ph.D. Law Student YELḰÁTŦE* (Rob Clifford) wasn’t really sure about his life path at first. He was late to sign up for classes at University and ended up taking Anthropology. Somewhat to his surprise, he performed really well. When a professor at the University of Victoria suggested he major in Anthropology, he did. While attending UVic to complete his undergrad, it became clear: Clifford’s interests lay in law, specifically Indigenous Law, known to the W̱SÁNEĆ as Natural Law. Clifford then went on to obtain both of his law degrees—his Juris Doctor (J.D.) [...]

WLC Requests Commercial Herring Fishery Moratorium and Calls Government to Task for Failing to Uphold Douglas Treaty Rights Recently, DFO admitted that herring populations in the Salish Sea declined by 60% between 2016 and 2020. The loss of herring poses serious threats to the survival of Indigenous people and the entire marine food chain. The sharp decline in herring populations is unsurprising to the WLC. While DFO claims that recent herring population numbers are some of the highest they have been since 1951—when DFO began collecting data—oral history and the archaeological record tell a different story:  Herring populations [...]

“Kid From the Rez places 6th in the World”: The Incredible Story of the Geronimo Canoe Club The Geronimo Canoe Club is an amazing story of local athletic achievement, against incredible odds. Over the last 40 years, the club’s mostly Tsartlip members have been racing and competing internationally in outrigger canoe races, despite not owning an actual outrigger canoe until last year. Instead, they would practice in dugout cedar war canoes and borrow boats for race days. The current team is small but mighty. The five members, George Horne, ṮḴOLEĆTEN (Joe Seward), Len Morris, Gus Morris, and Jasper Morris [...]

The WLC reaches agreement to review Wastewater Treatment Project, enhance W̱SÁNEĆ sovereignty in the region, and renew W̱SÁNEĆ’s relationship with the CRD. On December 5, 2019, the WLC and CRD signed a Memorandum of Understanding committing the parties to discuss the construction and operation of the CRD’s Wastewater Treatment Project within W̱SÁNEĆ territory. The Wastewater Treatment Plant Project is a $775 million project being undertaken by the Capital Regional District to enhance wastewater treatment in the region. The project includes the following:  A Wastewater Treatment Facility at McLoughlin Point to treat the wastewater and remove the residual solids, A [...]