Kanaka Bar Band: T'eqt'aqtn Indigenous Protected and Conserved Area (IPCA)

Help us reach our next fundraising goal of $450,000 as part of our critical project to support the Kanaka Bar Band’s 320-square km Indigenous Protected and Conserved Area (IPCA).

When complete, this IPCA will protect 125-square km of some of BC’s most diverse endangered old-growth forests!

These funds will support the stewardship of both the public lands ($300,000) and private lands ($150,000) that will be protected in the newly established Indigenous Protected & Conserved Area (IPCA). Our ability to raise these funds will represent a key stepping stone to move towards the final phase of the IPCA, where further economic development funding will be needed when the IPCA is formalized through provincial protected areas legislation. 

Funding will support:

  • Jobs to clean up waste from previous private landowners and industry on private and Crown lands.

  • Controlled burns to help reduce the risk of catastrophic fires and rejuvenate these fire-adapted ecosystems.

  • Land Guardian monitoring program to ensure no illegal placer mining, poaching, fishing, or other activities occur in the IPCA.

  • Development of cultural and ecological education programs.

  • Ecological and archaeological inventories and surveys throughout the IPCA.

  • Development of community-owned sustainable businesses, such as eco-tourism.

  • Ecological restoration of streams and other damaged areas.

  • And more!

The project

The Kanaka Bar Band, a Nlaka’pamux First Nation located about a three-hour drive from Vancouver, is developing a 320-square km T'eqt'aqtn Indigenous Protected and Conserved Area (IPCA) in their unceded territory.

As part of the Old-Growth Solutions Initiative (OGSI), we are working to provide the Kanaka Bar Band with the key support, from start to finish, to develop and establish this IPCA, which will encompass over 125-square km of some of BC’s rarest old growth.


This project will play a catalytic role in our broader provincial efforts to protect endangered old-growth forests in BC through the OGSI because it will serve as an end-to-end, scalable model that can be replicated in other communities.

Our Support

To date, we have provided significant support to the community by funding stewardship initiatives and capacity for land-use planning, purchasing private land containing an old-growth forest and important cultural sites to give back to the community with a conservation covenant, and funding legal support for the IPCA.

Looking Ahead

Through the Old-Growth Solutions Initiative (OGSI), we will continue working to provide the key support necessary for ensuring this IPCA comes to fruition. Our next steps will include providing interim funding for community stewardship jobs and other economic opportunities, purchasing more private lands of high conservation and cultural value for the community, and assisting with the development of Indigenous-owned businesses and jobs in industries that can be harmoniously linked to the IPCA (e.g. eco and cultural tourism, recreation, conservation jobs, etc.).

Background

The trees found growing in this area include an impressive collection of species, including old—growth Ponderosa pines, western redcedars, and the country’s largest documented interior Douglas-fir trees and Rocky Mountain junipers. In addition, the proposed IPCA hosts numerous archeological sites, including one of the oldest petroglyphs in all of Canada!

The proposed IPCA will support the Nation’s millennia-long connection to these lands, which are  located in one of the most ecologically diverse regions in the province.

The region is in a transition zone from coastal rainforest to dry interior forests, containing an incredibly unique mix of species, including 42 species at-risk.

Make a donation.

Please donate today to leave a lasting legacy for one of the most diverse regions in all of BC. Your donation is critical for helping ensure that this IPCA vision becomes a reality.

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News
Media Release: First Nation's Plan to Save Rare BC Old Growth to Move Forward with Stewardship Funding
Media Release: First Nation's Plan to Save Rare BC Old Growth to Move Forward with Stewardship Funding

The Nature-Based Solutions Foundation (NBSF) is working to raise critical stewardship funding by the New Year to support a plan to save rare old-growth forests and endangered ecosystems by the Kanaka Bar Indian Band south of Lytton

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Canada-wide Art Auction for Old Growth Raises $35,000 for NBSF!
Canada-wide Art Auction for Old Growth Raises $35,000 for NBSF!

The Nature-Based Solutions Foundation is ecstatic to announce that the second ever Art Auction for Old Growth, an annual Canada-wide event organized by painter Kyle Scheurmann, has raised over $35,000 for our projects to protect endangered old-growth forests in BC! This year’s event was a wonderful accomplishment thanks to the unified and unrelenting determination of passionate Canadian artists working to make a difference for old-growth forests.

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National Observer: Conservation group buys stand of majestic old-growth as gift for First Nation
National Observer: Conservation group buys stand of majestic old-growth as gift for First Nation

Read an article in the National Observer about the Nature-Based Solutions Foundation's work with the Kanaka Bar Indian Band to help protect the old-growth forests and native ecosystems in Kanaka Bar territory. The Foundation has purchased an exceptionally diverse old-growth forest on private lands to gift to the band with a conservation covenant and is also helping to fund their 350 square kilometre Indigenous Protected and Conserved Area (IPCA) proposal that would protect 125 square kilometres of old-growth forests in their territory.

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Globe & Mail: B.C. Indigenous conservation plan gets private backing
Globe & Mail: B.C. Indigenous conservation plan gets private backing

Read a new Globe and Mail article about the Nature-Based Solutions Foundation's purchase of potentially the most diverse old-growth forest on private land in BC—with both dry-adapted old-growth Ponderosa pine and wet-adapted western redcedar growing side-by-side—to be given back to the Kanaka Bar Indian Band (located south of Lytton) with a conservation covenant. It also features the Kanaka Bar Band's Indigenous Protected and Conserved Area (IPCA) proposal, which is also receiving support from the Foundation. The IPCA would protect about 350 square kilometres of land in their territory, including 125 square kilometres of old-growth forest.

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Media Release: Conservation group buys one of BC’s most diverse old-growth forests – to be gifted with a conservation covenant to the Kanaka Bar Indian Band
Media Release: Conservation group buys one of BC’s most diverse old-growth forests – to be gifted with a conservation covenant to the Kanaka Bar Indian Band

The Nature-Based Solutions Foundation has completed a purchase of what could be the most diverse old-growth forest in BC, located in the Fraser Canyon about 15 km south of Lytton in the unceded territory of the Kanaka Bar Indian Band. The private property was purchased in August by the new conservation organization, which intends to gift the land with a conservation covenant to the Kanaka Bar Band, who are working on major conservation projects throughout their territory.

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In the News