Columbia Basin Trust

🎨 Episode 29 of the Headwaters Podcast, Art for Change, is about the writers, storytellers and artists whose work and creative practices in the Columbia Basin are inspiring change. Featuring ʔakisq̓nuk First Nation poet Smokii Sumac @smokiisumac, and actor, playwright, folklorist, and spoken-word artist Shayna Jones @wearestoryfolk. 🎧 Listen to the full episode wherever you get podcasts, or right here: https://ow.ly/myfe50TZvjo. Headwaters Podcast #headwaterspodcast #headwaters #columbiabasin #ourtrust #art #changemakers

📣 Nursing and Kinesiology students at College of the Rockies now have access to an Anatomage table, a digital learning platform that assists students in understanding anatomy from a different visual perspective.

🏘️ The Fauquier Community Club has taken action to upgrade its well-used community hall, ensuring it’s prepared for future emergencies while reducing its environmental footprint and operational costs. 🧯 “The hall became our emergency operations centre during the 2021 Octopus Creek wildfires,” says Heather Fraser, Treasurer. “We wanted to be better equipped for future events, and with the help of Columbia Basin Trust, we’ve been able to do just that.” ☀️ In 2024, the club began making three significant upgrades to the hall. First, they replaced the aging oil furnace with a heat pump and a backup propane furnace, ensuring reliable, energy-efficient heating. They also added a backup generator to keep the hall operational during power outages. Finally, solar panels are being installed on the roof to generate renewable energy. 🍃 “These changes not only prepare us for emergencies but also help us cut greenhouse gas emissions,” says Fraser. The upgrades are also set to significantly lower the hall’s energy bills, a major relief for the club. “It’s tough for the community club to cover these costs just from hall rentals. We’ve had to be proactive.” 🔗 Read the full #basinstory right here: https://ow.ly/LAVM50TZwx9. #ourtrust #fauquier #kootenaylife #columbiabasin #community #communitycentre #communityrespose #rurallife #basinstories

🕮 We want to hear from you! What did you love and what would you change about our 2024 Our Trust Magazine? Let us know for a chance to win a $250 gift card to a local business of your choice! 📢 Our survey is open for a few more days and every submission grants you an entry to the draw! Enter right here: https://ow.ly/UXw350TZuz3 #ourtrust #annualmag #columbiabasin #contest #localbusiness #buylocal

🎃 Happy Halloween! 🍬 We wish you a fun and safe evening trick-or-treating. #columbiabasin #kootenaylife #kootsroots #halloween #costume #halloween2024

🪓 Season 3 of Headwaters Podcast finished with a bang. 🎙️ Episode 30 profiles hardcore Kootenay survival experts including: Kimberley Search and Rescue’s Sherah Martin-Pretty, The History Channel’s “Alone” contestants and bushcraft wizards, Alan Tenta and Greg Ovens, and Cranbrook’s Wilf Lloyd, who survived a harrowing grizzly attack. ➡️ Listen along wherever you get your podcasts or right here: https://lnkd.in/gYSeVX-N 🫱🏻🫲🏽 The Headwaters Podcast is brought to you by Columbia Basin Trust and hosted by Mitchell Scott, Editor-in-Chief of Kootenay Mountain Culture. 📷 Photos by Jeff Pew. #theheadwaterspodcast #kootenays #eastkootenays #westkootenays #kootenaymountainculture #headwaterspodcast #columbiariver #columbiabasin #podcast #kootenaypodcast #columbiabasintrust #britishcolumbia #canada #canadianpodcast #basinstories #basinfuture #bushcraft #ourtrust

🏞️ Restoring, protecting and speaking up for the land is at the heart of a five-year project being implemented by the Yaq̓it ʔa·knuqⱡi’it First Nation at Shottanana Lake, in the southern East Kootenay. The aim is to restore a healthy, functional wetland that supports native wildlife and increases open water habitat for species like ungulates and the at-risk western painted turtle. “We hold a covenant with the Creator to be the caretakers and stewards of Yaq̓it ʔa·knuqⱡi’it lands,” says Nasuʔkin (Chief) Heidi Gravelle of Yaq̓it ʔa·knuqⱡi’it First Nation. “With that we have an obligation to restore, protect and be the voices of our lands.” 🐢 This northern portion of the lake is fed by groundwater, so a main objective has been to restore this connection so that surface water can return to this area of the landscape. To this end, excavators and bulldozers have deepened the basin and loosened compacted soils. Also, features that appeal to western painted turtles have been added, such as floating or partially submerged logs that provide places for them to bask. 🔗 Read the full Basin Story by clicking here: https://lnkd.in/gpwqCjMs. Yaq̓it ʔa·knuqⱡi ‘it - Tobacco Plains Indian Band #basinstory #basinstories #wetland #ecosystem #ecosystemrestoration #columbiabasin

🐄 Celebrating Basin Businesses DAY 4 we're featuring Bolen Livestock - a Jaffray-based butcher that provides high quality local meats and custom cutting in the South Country, and recently benefitted from a Trust wage subsidy. 🧑🏻🌾 Bolen Livestock was founded by third-generation rancher Brody Bolen and his wife Kashtyn who launched Bolen Livestock in 2017. 🚜 Wanting to spend more time with his family, Bolen began looking for skilled meat cutters and, in 2020, he secured Columbia Basin Trust's Food Producer Wage Subsidy. Over the course of three years, he has hired and trained three employees in the butcher shop with support from the program, which supplements wages and increases Basin residents' access to locally grown, healthy food. 🔗Read the full #BasinStory right here: https://lnkd.in/g62MHfz9. #basinstories #ourtrust #columbiabasin #localfood #localmeat #buylocal #jaffraybc #beef

📣 We have a new series of webinars starting this November, designed to build the capacity of local non-profits! 👩🏽💻 The webinars are free-of-charge to non-profits in the Basin and their staff and volunteers. Topics include: ✔️ Don’t Leave your Future to Chance: Why Asset Management is the Key to Your Organizations Long Term Success - November 6 ✔️ Board Governance Roles and Responsibilities - November 7 ✔️ Capital Project Preparation for Non-profits - November 14 ✔️ Smart Budgeting for Non-profits: Strategies for Financial Sustainability - November 20 ✔️ Fundraising Success: Five Strategies for 2025 - November 26 ✔️ Organization Amalgamation for Non-profits - November 27 Click here to learn more and register: https://ow.ly/9PBC50TNbEr #OurTrust #ColumbiaBasin #nonprofitlife #notforprofit #nonprofits #volunteers #volunteerlove

🚗 DAY 3 of Celebrating Basin Businesses we're featuring Cleanline Automotive, the Invermere-based earth-friendly, full service auto maintenance and repair shop! 🔧 In 2012, husband and wife team Aaron and Steph Van de Kemp launched Cleanline Automotive with an innovative approach to vehicle repair, prioritizing environmental sustainability and a positive workplace culture. ♻️ After years of running a successful business while raising three children, mechanic Aaron and marketing professional Steph were exhausted, which led to seeking the guidance of Columbia Basin Trust’s Basin RevUp. The advanced business accelerator program provided Aaron and Steph with customized coaching, focusing on how to sustainably double their capacity without sacrificing their personal lives. The company started RevUp with four employees and is about to add a sixth, with plans to hire up to three more people once their new facility opens in 2025! 🔗 Read the full #BasinStory right here: https://ow.ly/5pHt50TNNAY. #carrepair #mechanics #mechanicsofig #sustainablerepair #disruptors #invermere #invermerebc #ourtrust #columbiabasin #columbiavalley