Over four days, nearly 200 people made their way to Nakusp to participate in the BCCFA’s 2022 Conference and AGM and to join the celebration of the 20th Anniversary of the organization.
The board and staff of the BCCFA want to extend our utmost gratitude to everyone that attended and participated in the event. Thank you again to the Nakusp and Area Community Forest (NACFOR) for hosting us in beautiful Nakusp and making it a celebration to remember.
The conference was a testament to what we have seen in our work over the past 20 years. There is no doubt that community forestry provides a vision for the future of forestry in our province that is innovative, forward-thinking, and inclusive of multiple values on the landscape and in communities. Community forestry takes heart, courage and hard work, and we are proud and humbled to be walking this path alongside all of our members and partners as we continue to move forward and to support the practice and expansion of sustainable community forest management in BC.
Please forward this to your community forest board and to everyone who came to the conference from your organization. We apologize in advance for double postings!
For people not able to attend, we have prepared a brief summary of the event. A full report will be published soon.
The Wetzink’wa Community Forest is the 2022 Recipient of the
Robin Hood Memorial Award
L to R: Aurora Lavender, General Manager, Dave Louwerse, Operations Manager, Colin Macleod, Board of Directors, Minister of Forests Katrine Conroy, Jennifer Gunter, BCCFA ED
A heartfelt congratulations to Wetzin’kwa CF for being selected for the 2022 award - it is so well-deserved. Minister Conroy joined us at our special 20th Anniversary banquet to present the Robin Hood Award for Excellence in Community Forestry. The Ministry created the award in 2016 to acknowledge the community forest that best exemplifies the values exhibited by the late Robin Hood and the goals and values of community forestry in BC. These values include community leadership, providing local and social economic opportunity, innovation and passion for community forestry. The award includes a $10,000 grant. News release
“As we commemorate 20 years of Community Forest Management in BC, we are proud to present this year’s Indicators Report. This report is a diverse collection of our memberships’ forest management achievements, the deepening of relationships between Indigenous and rural communities, growth in adaptive ecosystem management in the face of climate change and significant investments in our rural communities.” George Brcko, BCCFA President. News release
We welcome Tania Solonas from the McLeod Lake Mackenzie Community Forest to the board. Dan Macmaster with the West Boundary Community Forest was re-elected for a 2 year term. Directors in the middle of their 2 year term: Colin Macleod (Wetzin’kwa Community Forest), Daniel Gratton (Creston Community Forest), Klay Tindall (Spel̓kúmtn Community Forest), Warren Hansen (Sunshine Coast Community Forest), Ken Nielsen (Chinook Community Forest) George Brcko (Wells Gray Community Forest), Randy Spyksma (Logan Lake Community Forest), Frances Swan (Nakusp & Area Community Forest)
Missing from photo: Daniel Gratton and Warren Hansen
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