Program List

The UUQMIS (fun) Tla-o-qui-aht Language and Culture Program prepares Tla-o-qui-aht youth to take care of each other and the territory through experiences with biodiversity, traditional knowledge and Cultural Lifeways, to develop a strong sense of Tla-o-qui-aht identity. Program activities include canoe trips, hiking adventures, culture camps, clam gardening, plant relationships, animal stories, history oration, art and singing. 

The Warrior Program weaves traditional and mainstream leadership and wellness teachings and practices together on the land to strengthen the connections, capability, cultural pride and confidence of young men. It teaches survival in three ways: wilderness survival skills if you get lost in the woods; how to survive and lead in emergency situations; and strategies to survive life in today’s society.

The Warrior Program weaves traditional and mainstream leadership and wellness teachings and practices together on the land to strengthen the connections, capability, cultural pride and confidence of young men. It teaches survival in three ways: wilderness survival skills if you get lost in the woods; how to survive and lead in emergency situations; and strategies to survive life in today’s society.

Supporting Wellbeing provides tools and resources for individuals who deliver land-based programming, helping equip them to mitigate and respond to mental health challenges while on-the-land. The program was designed by and for Northern, Indigenous, land-based programmers.

From localized curriculum design to on-the-ground programming, we work relationally. Since 2015, Rivers to Ridges has supported young people in developing deep, respectful relationships with the land—while fostering empathy, awareness, and a strong sense of belonging. We offer curriculum writing, educational consulting, and outdoor programs rooted in place, culture, and connection. Our offerings are shaped in collaboration with Elders, educators, communities, and the natural world—honouring the knowledge that has always lived in relationship with the ground we stand on. Our work is based on lands that have long been cared for by the Ta’an Kwäch’än Council and the Kwanlin Dün First Nation. We honour their enduring presence, cultural strength, and sovereignty—and commit to learning and working in ways that uphold relationship, respect, and responsibility.

The Warrior Program weaves traditional and mainstream leadership and wellness teachings and practices together on the land to strengthen the connections, capability, cultural pride and confidence of young men. It teaches survival in three ways: wilderness survival skills if you get lost in the woods; how to survive and lead in emergency situations; and strategies to survive life in today’s society.

The SEAS summer student internship program is intended to create outdoor-based learning opportunities, career inspiration for youth and students, along with gaining hands-on experience and cultural knowledge of the traditional territory of the Nuxalkmc Peoples. The students learn to become stewards and what it means to be a steward of the land. This is an outdoor-baed program with its intentions of creating learning opportunities of fisheries programs, conservation programs, sustainable practices, and stewardship practices.

With continued land-based education from NNCEA and supports from other local organizations (Country Foods, Jordans Principal, Wellness etc.) our team goals are to engage more students from NNCEA and improve the consistency of land-based education.  NNCEA’s new Culture Camp will be one of our main land-based education centers and with help from local peoples/organizations, this program has no limits.  We are excited for this opportunity and believe that the land-based program will create successful students. See schedule of events here.

Spring and summer youth camps are hosted in Nisg̱a’a territory for youth to learn about hoon (fish), aks (water), and adaawaḵ (oral histories). The camps connect youth to their lands and waters and are run by Dr. Andrea Reid, a Nisg̱a’a citizen and UBC professor, John-Francis Lane, Lax̱g̱alts’ap Village Government’s Youth Worker, with partnership with the Ging̱olx Village Government’s Education Department and many community members.

Ni Hat’ni Dene is a network of Łutsël K’é Dene First Nation members, young and old, who serve as the stewards of Thaidene Nëné. An important responsibility of Ni Hat’ni Dene guardians is the transmission of knowledge to younger generations. Each summer, interns aged 18-24 join crews led by senior guardians. As they spend time on the land and water, interns learn about navigation, harvesting, reading the weather, language, and safety in the Dene way (by doing). This intergenerational transfer of knowledge ensures our rights and responsibilities as Łutsël K’é Dene in the stewardship of Thaidene Nëné will continue to be recognized and exercised into the future.

Niislaa Naay Healing House is running land-based programming to revive land stewardship and sustainable food harvesting. They follow the cycles of the season and coordinate activities such as harvesting foods and medicines, taking care of the places those resources come from, weaving, net making, and offer low-barrier access to land-based programming (e.g., creating spaces close to the village that participants can boat, hike, or drive to for overnight trips).

Koeye Camp is a land-based language and culture program for Heiltsuk youth. Since 1999, Qqs Projects Society has been bringing generations of young leaders and learners to the Koeye Watershed, around 30 nautical miles south of Bella Bella, where they participate in an immersive and hands-on program that incorporates daily language lessons, ancestral foods and medicines, weaving, canoe pulling, and a deep dive on potlatch protocols in Dhadhixsistala – our bighouse in Koeye.

The mission of SEAS is to empower youth of First Nations communities to be stewards of their territories and natural resources by building educational capacity, creating opportunities for hands-on experience and supporting youth in achieving their educational and career goals. In Klemtu our program is centered on the development and preservation of culture, education regarding sustainable non-extractive industry, understanding of stewardship responsibilities, governance structures, and the conservation of resource and wildlife habitat within the Kitasoo Xai’xais territory.

The purpose of the program is to ensure that all students learn and directly experience the cultural traditions of food gathering and harvesting of all the traditional resources available to Kitasoo Xai’Xais members. Students experience the full benefits of the sustainable resources as well as the meaning of inherent Indigenous rights that comes with membership

The Warrior Program weaves traditional and mainstream leadership and wellness teachings and practices together on the land to strengthen the connections, capability, cultural pride and confidence of young men. It teaches survival in three ways: wilderness survival skills if you get lost in the woods; how to survive and lead in emergency situations; and strategies to survive life in today’s society.

The Warrior Program weaves traditional and mainstream leadership and wellness teachings and practices together on the land to strengthen the connections, capability, cultural pride and confidence of young men. It teaches survival in three ways: wilderness survival skills if you get lost in the woods; how to survive and lead in emergency situations; and strategies to survive life in today’s society.

The Warrior Program weaves traditional and mainstream leadership and wellness teachings and practices together on the land to strengthen the connections, capability, cultural pride and confidence of young men. It teaches survival in three ways: wilderness survival skills if you get lost in the woods; how to survive and lead in emergency situations; and strategies to survive life in today’s society.

Patrick Bergstrom leads the Senior Years (grades 9-12) Land Based Program while Doug Braden leads the Middle Years Land Based Program (grades 6-8) at Helen Betty Osborne Ininiw Education Resource Centre. We provide Land Based opportunities and teachings for students which revolve around the six seasons. These activities include goose blind etiquette/safety, Birch tree tapping, splitting wood, campfire building, shelter building (lean-to and quinzee), goose/duck plucking and singeing, bow and arrow construction, snow shoe construction, canoeing, trapping/snaring, skinning, fishing, ice fishing, etc.

Wei Wai Kum, K'omoks, and Wei Wai Kai Nations have joined forces with Nanwakolas Council to come restore a clam garden together. They have involved youth from the Nations as well so that they can learn about this important work that their ancestors did by doing it. As the future knowledge keepers of their communities, youth are learning the knowledge and skills they will need to harvest for future generations.

The Gitanyow Lax’yip Stewardship Guardians are the ‘eyes and ears’ on the Lax’yip (Territory) and provide a critical role in environmental and cultural monitoring. We are trying to involve youth in our work. The Flow of Gwelx Yeenst is a vision that has been within the Gitanyow people for many many years. The importance of passing on something that is pristine and healthy to the next generation has and will always be a high priority.

The Warrior Program weaves traditional and mainstream leadership and wellness teachings and practices together on the land to strengthen the connections, capability, cultural pride and confidence of young men. It teaches survival in three ways: wilderness survival skills if you get lost in the woods; how to survive and lead in emergency situations; and strategies to survive life in today’s society.

Based in Yellowknife, we provide training and mentorship to educators to bring their practice outdoors. We envision all educators in the NWT spending time connecting with nature and community as a regular and integrated part of their practice. Bushkids offers mentorships to teachers, with their students, to help them to feel comfortable implementing on-the-Land learning into their pedagogical approaches delivered in the public school system. Land led learning should be accessible to all children and youth. We are grounded in a Land-based philosophy where Indigenous and Euro-western world views co-exist in a mutually respectful and welcoming space (i.e. “ethical space”).

SEAS is a land-and-water-based education program at Bella Bella Community School, a Kindergarten to Grade 12 band-operated and certified Independent school in the Heiltsuk community of Bella Bella. Our program began in 2011 and has grown to become an integral part of our school. There are also unique SEAS programs in some of our neighbouring communities. SEAS connects our school community with mentors, knowledge holders, and experts, providing opportunities for students to learn about and directly experience the lands, waters, and seasonal harvest cycles of their traditional territories. These immersive experiences strengthen and uplift Heiltsuk youth as they develop into confident individuals, providers, and caretakers of their territory, culture, and community.

A̱ka̱la Outdoor Education Society Uk̕wana̱lis, BC Our purpose is to create land and water-based educational opportunities for Musgamakw Dzawada̱’enux̱w citizens. We Provide programming based on best practices to support mental and physical wellness Facilitate leadership training Teach outdoor skills that promote the safe use of Musgamakw Dzawada̱’enux̱w traditional territory Provide certifications in the outdoor education field The programs are delivered with a Musgamakw Dzawada̱’enux̱w worldview. Our traditional laws and values govern how we operate and deliver programs. Values: A̱ka̱la Society is guided by the Musgamakw Dzawada̱’enux̱w law of maya̱’xala, a word that does not have an English language counterpart, but is akin to respect and reciprocity. Within maya̱’xala are values of gratitude and spirituality. We continue to learn how to weave maya̱’xala into our lives and programs, and understand that this will be a lifelong journey. No matter where you are in your understanding and practice of maya’xa̱la, you are welcome to join the A̱ka̱la ‘na̱myut.