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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, effective immediately. Percy’s resignation is due to personal reasons; the board fully supports Percy’s decision to move on to new opportunities, dedicating more of his time to his healing journey.

We thank Percy for his many contributions to Coast Funds and his dedication to the coastal First Nations we serve. Percy assumed the role of Chair in 2018, after serving as Vice-Chair starting in 2017, and director since 2013. As Chair, Percy has led Coast Funds through some important milestones, including our 10-year anniversary; the surpassing of $60 million in funding for First Nations’ economic development initiatives; and the development of our current strategic plan with focus on strengthening First Nations’ self-determined finance and the intergenerational sustainability of Coast Funds.

Percy’s commitment to Coast Funds and to the Nations we serve was untiring, and his enthusiasm is always inspiring. We know Percy will remain a strong supporter of Coast Funds and we wish him the very best. The board has initiated recruitment for a new director to fill the vacancy and will be selecting Coast Funds’ next Chair over the coming weeks.
 
If you are interested in director opportunities with Coast Funds, please contact Brodie Guy, CEO at 604-684-0223 or brodie@coastfunds.ca.

Coast Funds is dedicated to empowering First Nations in the Great Bear Rainforest and Haida Gwaii to achieve healthy and vibrant economies and communities in tandem with the conservation of their homelands for the benefit of future generations. We were created in 2007 out of mutual recognition by conservationists, First Nations, industry, and government that a sustainable economy is vital to conservation efforts in the Great Bear Rainforest and Haida Gwaii areas of British Columbia.
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The Ecological Society of America (ESA) has published its latest issue of Issues in Ecology entitled “Innovative Finance for Conservation: Roles for Ecologists and Practitioners” that offers guidelines for developing standardized, ethical and effective conservation finance projects.

Coast Funds’ CEO Brodie Guy co-authored the paper along with Amanda D. Rodewald (lead author), Peter Arcese, Janis Sarra, John Tobin-de la Puente, Jeffrey Sayer, Frank Hawkins, Tara Martin, and Kelly Wachowicz.

First Nations and Coast Funds are featured in the paper, demonstrating how Indigenous leadership and partnerships can and must ameliorate global shortfalls in conservation and provide innovation in conservation finance.
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First Nations’ stewardship departments are leading efforts to ensure salmon populations are managed with the best available data. A recent Narwhal Article highlights one area where First Nations stewardship endeavours are filling in gaps left behind by decreased federal funding.

The article explores how decreased funding for monitoring of spawning habitats by creekwalkers—individuals who walk the spawning habitat of salmon to count the fish one by one—could greatly impact the future of the species.

But First Nations stewardship departments—including Kitasoo/Xai'xais, Gitga'at, and Haíɫzaqv First Nations—are stepping up to fill in the information gaps left by the decrease in federal monitoring.
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Homalco Wildlife and Culture Tours (HWCT) announced an exciting new expansion for their business coming this spring. The Indigenous-owned ecotourism organization is opening a new adventure centre in Campbell River, BC, launching two new state-of-the-art adventure tour vessels and adding a new Whales, Wildlife and Culture Tour.

“All of this great news spells progress for the Homalco First Nation,” says Chief Darren Blaney. “While covid-19 is still a factor for the foreseeable future, our Homalco First Nation is ready to welcome visitors again, for now, and as long as we deem it safe to do so. With this expansion great things can happen: knowledge of our culture and appreciation for our environment can be shared with a larger audience and more of our people can be hired and their skills developed. I believe our tour company will continue to help in healing, creating resilience and building a bright future for our people.”
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We are honoured to present the stories First Nations are sharing in this issue and online. If you would like us to publish your story, please reach out to us.
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Photo credits: Laura Hope, Brodie Guy, George Fisher, Homalco Wildlife & Cultural Tours.

Coast Funds is globally recognized as a model of permanent conservation financing that invests to strengthen the well-being of First Nations and the ecological integrity of the Great Bear Rainforest and Haida Gwaii regions of British Columbia, Canada.  Since inception, Coast Funds has approved $102.4 million towards 409 conservation and sustainable economic development projects.  
www.coastfunds.ca
750 - 475 West Georgia Street
Vancouver, BC  V6B 4M9
PHONE   +1 604 684 0223
info@coastfunds.ca

© 2020 COAST CONSERVATION ENDOWMENT FUND FOUNDATION (COAST FUNDS).  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

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