By Tricia Thomas

Aboriginal communities are no longer being left out of conservation efforts in their traditional territories.

That’s one result of a recent partnership between Naut’sa mawt Tribal Council, Tsawwassen First Nation’s joint venture with Matcon Civil Constructors and the South Coast Conservation Program. The long-range goal involves identifying species at risk, as well as culturally significant species, while restoring threatened habitat areas in Tsawwassen and Tsleil-Waututh nations’ wetlands.

The partnership offers stewardship practices workshops, traditional ecological knowledge, elders, species-at-risk specialists and mentors.

The first project is called: Addressing conservation knowledge and expertise gaps for the People of the Salish Sea. The partnership aims to build expertise among First Nations in identifying native plants, species at risk, and invasive plants, while bridging gaps between traditional cultural values and modern scientific approaches.

Resources will also be provided for communities to become integral conservation partners. At Tsawwassen, the project will involve youth from the nation’s work experience program in conservation training.

To learn more about the partnership, contact: project manager Nicci Bergunder at 604-802-9537