News

Removal of Invasive Deer on SḰŦÁMEN to Continue in Fall 2024 Last year, property owners voted to move forward with the eradication of all fallow deer on Sidney Island. Eradication of fallow deer on Sidney Island will continue this fall. This permanent elimination of the fallow deer on Sidney Island is a last resort effort to stop the devastating impact they’ve caused the delicate ecosystem. Fallow deer are an invasive species introduced in the area by Europeans in the 1900s. The deer indiscriminately eat the island’s vegetation and have left the island devoid of medicines and food bulbs [...]

Study Hall for Indians    High school students from four Indian reserves on the Saanich peninsula are being provided with a “study hall” program on week nights in Tsartlip School, Brentwood.    Transportation to the school, where tutors and reference materials are available, has been arranged by the Indian school board.    Molly Pelkey, school and home co-ordinator, says there are 75 students from East and West Saanich, Pat Bay and Cole Bay reserves who can take advantage of the program.    Most of the students achieve much more by studying in classroom environment, she said.    “They find this program really works.”    A private [...]

This year’s Tribal Journeys event culminated on August 5th, 2024 and was a resounding success. (Shown here: Video of W̱SÁNEĆ landing) Tribal Journeys are annual traditional canoe voyages during which canoe families representing individual First Nations and Tribes paddle long distances across ancestral waterways to a shared location for five Protocol Days. Tribal Journeys are an opportunity to celebrate the reemergence of Coast Salish culture and communities on the water, preserve cultural knowledge, and encourage the continued use of canoes. When it comes to Tribal Journeys, the journey is just as important as the destination. As each canoe [...]

Read the transcript below to learn more about ĆILTEN (Phil)  and the impactful work he’ll be doing with the W̱SÁNEĆ Leadership Council. Can you tell me a bit about who you are and where you’re from? ÍY¸ ȻEĆIL, SI¸ÁM¸ ĆILTEN TŦE NE SNÁ ĆSELÁ¸E SEN W̱JOȽEȽP. Good morning. I am from the Tsartlip First Nation and have grown up in our community all my life. I have four children and one grandson —  three daughters and one son — and I have been part of the Tom and Bartleman family here in Tsartlip. What kind of work will [...]

Hope is Queen will pressure Ottawa IMAGE CAPTION: Chief Vern Jacks, of the Tseycum First Nation, holds a letter outlining his concerns over native rights that he’ll present to Queen Elizabeth when the monarch lands in Victoria this afternoon. “A dominant society that does not respect or acknowledge our history,” the letter states. “Our youths feel alienated because there still exists the discrimination that was afflicted on our people by the arrival of the first Europeans.”    The Queen and Prince Philip begin their Canadian tour today.  After several hours in Nunavut, Canada’s newest territory, they will land at a Canadian [...]

This time of year, around the new moon in the month of October, is traditionally known as PEKELANEW - The Moon That Turns the Leaves White  This is the moon of the turning white season (frost). This moon brings the first frost. The leaves lose their colours and turn pale. Deer hunting is the activity during this moon. The earth is cooling down and the people turn their efforts to hunting. WEATHER The longer, cooler nights can lead to frost on the leaves and the ground in higher country. ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES The W̱SÁNEĆ people began splitting the cedar [...]

📰 Take a look at a February 1977 issue of the “Tribal News,” a window into the past of the Saanich Nation. ✨ Here’s a sneak peak at what you’ll find in this article: ✔️ Dave Elliott asserts Saanich Nation’s rightful ownership of Mt. Newton and opposes ongoing logging and land sales. ✔️ Chief Gus Bill (Tsyal-qwaya) shares wisdom and a vision of unity. 🤝🏾 ✔️ News from Pauquachin, Tsartlip, Tsawout, and Tseycum bands highlight progress and challenges. 🏘️🛶 ✔️ Beautiful poems by Phoena Spahan, a Grade 10 student at Parkland High. 🧡 ✔️ And More: Land claims, local initiatives, [...]