The Aboriginal Newspaper of British
Columbia & Yukon
Top News - June - 2003
Published June 9, 2003
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Kincolith joins information highway
Gitksan youth win bronze award for business planThis is only a partial listing of the stories featured in the June 2003 issue of Raven's Eye. If you are not receiving your own copy of Raven's Eye, then you have missed out on a lot.
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New road opens opportunities
Yvonne Irene Gladue, Raven's Eye Writer, Nass ValleyGingolx (Kincolith), one of four major communities within the Nass Valley in the northeastern part of the province, is connected to the rest of the mainland by a 28 km, two-lane, all-weather road, now that the Kincolith Extension Highway Project is complete.
Kincolith, an isolated community only accessible by boat, ferry or float plane service from Prince Rupert, is the last community of four including New Aiyansh, Greenville and Gitwinksihkw, to be accessed by a roadway.
According to Dr. Joseph Gosnell, president of the Nisga'a Nation, the other three communities have had road access since 1959. A road to the community up to now was deemed too expensive to build as it would have to run through mountainous terrain and portions of it would have to run along a river.
The construction, which began in 2000, employed 45 per cent of the community. Gosnell said that it actually took eight years for the community to see the completed road.
In 1995, former minister of Indian Affairs Ron Irwin made the announcement when he visited the community during one the Nisga'a's tribal conventions. Gosnell said that the people are really happy about the road and and that they no longer have to travel by water in what he calls a treacherous journey most of the year.
"I do not even know how to describe the storms in northern B.C.; the winds can range anywhere from zero to 100 kilometres an hour in a matter of minutes. That is what the community had to contend with for many years," he said.
"What the road has done is that it's finally connected and brought all of our communities together. We can all take part in each other's cultural activities. It will only take 90 minutes to get to New Aiyansh now; it used to take us four hours by boat."
Two stores in Kincolith ordered groceries on a regular basis using the ferry and privately owned fishing boats, but Gosnell said that shopping for groceries was quite expensive for the community.
Close to 1,800 people are registered on the Kincolith band list. Gosnell says the majority moved away because of the isolation. He estimates that one-third of the number now calls the community home. Gosnell thinks that employment opportunities in the community will happen over time. "We are going to have to wait and see. In terms of economic development, I think that the people of Kincolith are presently looking at offering tourist opportunities in that area, because more people will be going there," he said.
On May 17, more than 1,000 people gathered in Laxgalts'ap, commonly known as Greenville, to officially open the road with a ribbon cutting and a blessing ceremony. Robert Nault, minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, Judith Reid, BC minister of transportation and Nisga'a chiefs and Elders of the Wolf, Killer Whale, Raven and Eagle tribes, the principal groups of the area, attended the one-day celebration. More than 40 vehicles then drove to Kincolith where a ribbon-cutting ceremony and a traditional banquet were held. Eric Grandison, communications co-ordinator for the Nisga'a Lisims government, attended the ceremony he said that the attendance was overwhelming for the celebration.
"The ceremony was very exciting, it was beautiful, and the stretch of road there is very scenic. It was a beautiful drive," he said.
Kathy Vinton, public affairs officer with the transportation ministry in Victoria, said that a link between the communities of Kincolith and Greenville is a positive move. "It is hoped that this road will have a benefit for tourism in that community. Overall, the major benefit for us was working side by side with the Nisga'a Nation in an effective and highly co-operative relationship," she said.
Kincolith joins information highway
Matt Ross, Raven's Eye WriterNow that the world can travel to Kincolith (Gingolx), the community is showcasing itself on the World Wide Web.
On the same weekend when the Nisga'a Highway was inaugurated, which finally gives the population of 400 a road in and out of town after decades of isolation, Kincolith launched its own Web site. As of May 16, Net surfers can visit http://collections.ic.gc.ca/gingolx to see how the town carved and erected its totem pole, a project completed in 2001 by grades 6 to 8 students.
The pictures, video and information about the town was the effort of the Gingolx Media Centre, now in its eighth month of providing computer and video training to teenagers and young adults. With eight computer stations and plans for a soundproof room, the centre's goal is to become a self-sustaining operation producing community generated technology projects.
With initial start-up costs to renovate the building and provide some capital coming from Kincolith's band council, there are five employees at the centre.
A $25,000 grant by Canada's Digital Collections, a division of Industry Canada, is part of a youth employment strategy by Human Resources Development Canada to provide paid experience for those new to the workforce.
Taking advantage of this venture is April Nelson, 30, who was in Kincolith for seven months. With no training or background in the media arts, Nelson has been immersed in the process of creating television and computer images since October.
Learning the skills to shoot with a digital camera plus the editing required to prepare DVDs, Nelson enjoys the variety that is offered with the industry.
"The editing is pretty neat by putting the pictures together with the audio, because they're done (recorded) at different times," she said during the filming of the highway opening ceremonies.
Driving the media centre is Mike Scott, originally from South Africa, who's lived in Kincolith for three years as his wife teaches at the local elementary school. Between the road opening and the re-dedication of the local Anglican church last year, Scott determined these events required permanent video evidence.
"There was nobody who was going to videotape these but just some people taking their own personal photos," Scott told the local council.
Scott believes it's important for the community to preserve its own history.
"Outsiders otherwise will take the information, edit the film, and the locals never see it nor do they have an input into how it's put together," said Scott.
Besides constructing the Web site around the totem pole, one of the first projects by the centre was to film a three-minute video about the catch and significance of the oolichan, a small fish found in the nearby waters that offers valuable nutrients and grease. Grades 3 and 4 students from Nathan Barton public school contributed significantly to the documentary, including the on-air questioning and post-production process.
"We helped them take shots, and they did a lot of the voiceovers and editing too," April Nelson said.
Scott added that while the film wasn't made by professionals, the final quality wasn't the most important element.
"It's not quite as polished, but it has a community feel with our involvement and voices."
Although Kincolith's Web site is in its early days, already it has received praise from the agency funding the centre. Attending the Net launch and road opening was Christina Bing, a project officer from Ottawa.
"Not only does it have information with photos, but there is a tremendous history of the five stories of the crests," Bing said about the Web site. She was referring to the animals of the West Coast First Nations.
Content, though, isn't the first criterion used to evaluate the success of grants.
"We look at the youth experience and then the Web site itself," stated Bing who pointed out that of 300 projects funded nationally since 1996, 20 have been allocated to Native communities in British Columbia.
That there's an additional $25,000 for next year indicates the feds are pleased with the direction of the Gingolx Media Centre.
"They really like it, and we're the only ones that have this in the Nass Valley," said Nelson.
Gitksan youth win bronze award for business plan
Heather Andrews Miller
Raven's Eye Writer, HalifaxThree students from Hazelton Secondary School teamed up to compete in the national E-Spirit Business Plan Competition held in Halifax in May and sponsored by the Business Development Bank of Canada. Their project entitled Hiking Gitksan History Ltd. won the bronze award. The competition encourages Canada's Aboriginal youth to experience entrepreneurship through hands-on learning. Cecilia Morgan spoke for the team, which also includes Khymlhyn Yunkws and Anthony Vickers.
"Originally we wanted to offer guided interpretive hikes on our historic Gitksan trails, but we soon broadened it to include awareness of our culture as well," she said.
Modules on the Business Development Bank's Web site guided the students through the many steps of developing a business plan. Morgan said that the group also had "tons of help from the people in our community." A local banker assisted with financial details, and the school librarian helped in numerous ways, especially with the PowerPoint presentation needed to present the plan, she added.
"Brigitta Van Heek, counsellor at the school, was our sponsor and our mentor and we couldn't have done it without her," she said. "She recruited additional business people from the community to work with us, such as a local tourism operator who is familiar with setting up trade shows and other promotional activities."
The team split up the work. "Some of the modules were easily done, and I could complete them in a spare period during our school day. But others we had to work on together, being more complex and detailed. Anthony and Khymlhyn dedicated a lot of hours too," she said.
Hazleton, located in the northwest section of British Columbia, is surrounded by mountains and forests, and the Gitksan have called the area home for centuries. "The historical significance is a big part of our enterprise. The trails were used to transport trade goods from the coast to each of the First Nation villages in the area. The trails are also shared with wildlife, so they have been kept in pristine condition," she said.
Initially, the business plan said that Yunkws and Vickers would be doing the guiding, with Morgan in the office looking after reservations and other administrative duties. "Once the business gets up and running, we projected the need to hire others."
Morgan, at 18 years of age, is graduating from high school this month, and admits that she'd like to embark on post-secondary education in political sciences before settling down to put the business plan to work. "But it's something that all three of us would like to pursue at some point, as we all feel there is a need for such a venture and we feel we could make a living at it, while promoting and preserving our culture at the same time."
Brigitta Van Heek said the students worked well together, each enjoying a special area of interest and expertise. "Cecilia came up with some excellent ideas and was a great leader, while Khymlhyn worked hard on the marketing and on preparing the video. Anthony is great with computers and created an outstanding PowerPoint presentation. They complemented each other, and they were a great team."
Van Heek recognizes that the slogan of the project, Old Trails, New Adventures, is an indication of the very worthwhile activity the business proposal could become. "We have lots of tourists heading to Alaska or the Queen Charlotte Islands. There is such an interest in Aboriginal culture, and this idea would allow visitors to get first-hand experiences and exposure to traditional activities," she said. Although she recognizes the value of museums and interpretive centres for preserving items and providing excellent historical information, she says that getting out into ancestral lands, and walking the time-honoured trails can only be done in the natural setting upon which this project has focused. "Tourists can actually live the culture; they can get out into the wilderness and sample traditional foods and experience life away from the modern lifestyle which we have developed today."
Van Heek feels the Business Development Bank should be commended for the excellent opportunity afforded to the youth who participated in the competition and in the conference. "They brought 65 teams together from Nunavut to British Columbia. The students presented their business plans to the assembled group and were judged on originality and on their ability to complete each of the seven modules," she said. Each team also participated in a trade show that featured information and cultural items specific to their projects.
The 2003 E-Spirit theme was Know No Boundaries. Michel Vennat, president and chief executive officer of the Business Development Bank, estimates that 300,000 new jobs will be required to meet the demand from Aboriginal people entering the workforce in the next 10 years. "This is why it is so vitally important to expose Aboriginal youth to the potential of entrepreneurship."