Our Projects

Y.O.W!

Youth on Water
At the heart of the SWCC Youth on Water program is our recognition of the immense value of the Skeena watershed and the Sacred headwaters. While ascribing to the mandate of SWCC, the Y.O.W. program will provide an opportunity for local youth to experience the grandeur of the Skeena River and the Sacred Headwaters through direct, water level, engagement.  Y.O.W. will achieve its multifaceted goals through community partnerships, the utilization of committed volunteers, the unwavering commitment of the Skeena Watershed Conservation Coalition employees, and, most importantly, through the efforts of the YOW participants.

The goals of this exciting new program are:
1) To raise awareness amongst local youth regarding the value of environmental conservation, particularly in regards to ongoing protection of the Skeena River and the Sacred Headwaters (source of the Stikine & Nass Rivers);
2) To provide youth with an opportunity to learn about the First Nations Cultures that have traditionally maintained stewardship of the Sacred Headwaters and Skeena River;
3) To build self esteem amongst the youth participants and empower youth participants to become leaders in their communities;
4) To equip local youth with tangible and transferable job skills that will assist them in their future vocations;
5) To provide meaningful, and healthy, recreation opportunities for local youth.
The objectives of the YOW program:
1) Raise conservation awareness:
a) by presenting current threats to the integrity of the Skeena River and the Sacred headwaters in an education module presented by a relevant professional;
b) by presenting a means of conserving fish habitat and a basic description of fish species and lifecycles in an educational module presented by a relevant professional;
c) by presenting a means of conserving wildlife habitat and a basic description of the animals living in the area in an educational module presented by a relevant professional;
d) by presenting sustainable development concepts.
2) Cultural Component:
a) to be determined based on consultation with local First Nations
3) Self esteem building, leadership, and skills training through:
a) empowerment of youth to make direct, tangible, and measurable contributions to the conservation of the Skeena River and Klappan area through participation in data gathering expeditions;
b) facilitation of youth presentations based on their experiences in the YOW program through out their home communities;
c) encouragement of youth involvement in ongoing SWCC media campaigns;
c) facilitation of incrementally acquired river based skills:
i) first aid training
ii) swift water rescue training
iii) introduction to white water raft guiding
iv) introduction to whitewater kayaking.
4) Recreation:
a) regularly scheduled river expeditions;
b) movie nights and social events.
The responsibility of stewardship of one of the most extraordinary regions in North America will soon fall to the youth of our region. The SWCC is confident that through the YOW program we can ensure that some of the upcoming leaders of our communities will have had an opportunity to experience, first hand the grandeur of the Skeena river and the Sacred Headwaters. While doing so, youth in the YOW program will acquire tangible and transferable skills that will allow them to pursue work on any river in the world.
The future is YOW!
Contact for more information

Sacred Headwaters Campaign

Northern BC’s Sacred Headwaters is a rare and special place. Here in a vast alpine basin, three of the Northwest’s greatest salmon rivers are born: the Skeena, the Nass and the Stikine. Stone sheep, caribou, grizzly bears and wolves call the Headwaters home, and the area is critically important to the local indigenous people, the Tahltan.

Royal Dutch Shell wants to exploit the Sacred Headwaters for coalbed methane gas. Such a development would see the wild landscape of the Sacred Headwaters turned into an industrial maze of wellheads, roads and pipelines.

Local indigenous people from the communities of Iskut and Telegraph Creek have protested Shell’s development since it was first proposed. There have been road blockades and arrests, and members of the Iskut First Nation are currently in court with Shell.

Skeena Watershed Conservation Coalition has been working since 2004 to protect the Sacred Headwaters from coalbed methane development. Our work has included conducting public outreach and education, mobilizing residents of the Skeena watershed, and engaging in dialogue with Shell and the BC government.

Technical Studies

Baseline Inventory Research
Our baseline inventory research is designed to contribute to the general understanding of the upper Skeena’s globally significant wildlife, wild salmon, and cultural heritage resources.  These projects target selected wildlife, fisheries and cultural heritage features as well as locations of specific conservation concern. 
Due to a widely recognized deficiency of science-based knowledge specific to the remote upper Skeena ecosystem, there is relevant information that is not included in proposed development plans for the Skeena watershed.  Baseline inventories provide an accurate record of the landscape and its components as they naturally occur, increasing the opportunity for effective sustainable development decisions to take place now and into the future. 

For more information on current or past baseline inventories please contact:

Skeena Awareness Project

A discovery expedition of the Upper Skeena lead by Director, Jim Allen. After completing a Swiftwater Rescue Technician course, the 10 person field crew completed 2 consecutive 10 day Upper Skeena River rafting expeditions in hopes of finding and reviving ancient heritage trails for archaeological documentation and development of eco-tourism. It was a joint project with Hereditary Chief, Gwinninixtkw, who lead the Cultural Heritage portion of the expedition. The project found and revived 12km of ancient Gitxsan trail as well as campsites for future use by outdoor adventurers Among these trails and campsites were ancient village remnants, fish pits and gravesites. This type of sustainable development not only helps local economy, it also demonstrates an alternative to industrialization or less sustainable developments in the watershed while establishing a strong history of use and occupation of the land. The first expedition was flown in by bush plane to the Mosque River and the second was transported by rail car to the Sustut river and Skeena river confluence.  A short film, “Devil’s Club & Blazes - searching for the trails of our Gitxsan Ancestors” was produced and is available in our Merchandise section.

Public Education

SWCC public education initiatives provide accurate and updated information on current conservation issues and opportunities within the Skeena watershed.  These programs take the form of film nights, slide shows, guest lectures, technical presentations, field courses and information brochures.  They occur at all levels of the regional community including; schools, band councils, town councils, chambers of commerce, stakeholder groups and community meetings. 
The Skeena watershed is a large complex ecosystem on an internationally significant scale.  The recent pace of development proposed in the Skeena is challenging for any one person or group of people to keep with.  Our public education programs utilize a well connected network of government, industry, NGO, First Nation and community service groups to deliver forward moving education and outreach products. 
Education is the foundation of effective stewardship and sustainable development planning.

Conservation Camps for Kids
2009 will be our 5th year of operation with the Cliffs at Kispiox River organizing and instructing camps for youth aged 10-17.  This past year we hosted 3 weeks of camps in August at the wilderness resort where participants learned to identify edible & medicinal plants, swiftwater safety, bear awareness, tracking and the art of wildlife identification, campfire cooking, oaring a raft, horsemanship, fly-fishing and MUCH more.  All these skills are integrated with a conservation based curriculum that helps instill our youth with a unique and passionate connection to nature.  Most students come from the local area and the camps this year boast a number of international students including a group of orphans.  SWCC donates the skills of our outdoor instructors and camp facilitators and would like to thank BC Parks, Raven Rescue, Chris Howard and Kispiox Fishing Company for donating their expertise as well.  For more information, please and receive a free brochure.

Skeena Watershed School Curriculum
SWCC is organizing with forestry, biology, math, geography and outdoor recreation teachers from regional schools to develop a Skeena Watershed School Curriculum, at the high school level.  This program will introduce locally relevant lesson plans to traditional academic course loads.  The long term goal of the Skeena Watershed School Curriculum is to fully incorporate Skeena specific lesson plans into regional school programs, much like the elementary level programs already being implemented. 

These lesson plans include; Skeena geography (global, regional, local), trip planning exercises, goggle earth mapping, upper Skeena flora and fauna, pacific wild salmon ecology and fire ecology.  The watershed’s future leaders are in the regional school system now.  By providing teachers with locally engaging lesson plans, we will help students incorporate their educational experience with a growing sense of community service and stewardship.

While these lesson plans are being developed, SWCC’s education Team provides course/subject specific presentations that assist teachers with their current lesson plans.  Topics we have helped with include (but are not limited to): a local community organization example, “How can I help?”, local environmental threats, how small groups make a difference (think globally act locally).  To sign your class up for a Skeena specific lesson plan or learn more about the long term goals of this educational project contact:

Film Nights
Usually hosted once per month in a number of communities within the watershed, our film nights are home to many of the initiatives working within the watershed and internationally.  Admission is always by donation and many stay after the film for a discussion.  To find out what film is playing next in your community, contact:

Elementary Program Development
Skeena Watershed Conservation Coalition SWCC) partnered with the Storytellers Foundation in the 2007/2008 school year to deliver hands on workshops in the local Hazelton schools looking at the issues of food and waste.  Also part of the goal was to invite kids to engage is community development that was tangible, they could see the result of their efforts.

The workshops were geared towards grades 4 – 7 and encouraged the youth to think critically about community issues, specifically in association with food.  Students learned about local food systems, explored issues around food miles and waste, and took action by building a pop bottle green house and planted seedlings.

The success of the first year of this program has led to the development of Stage 2 of a youth education partnership with the Storytellers.  Stage 2 will focus on Water.  While still in the development stages, the Water lessons will encourage kids to take a closer look at where water comes from, specifically the Skeena watershed, the importance of clean water and the human reliance on water. 

One of the most exciting developments of the school curriculum for 2008/ 2009 will be the inclusion of youth mentors.  Storytellers will be employing youth from the community who will actively participate in local programs to better their community.  The goal of the partnership with SWCC and Storytellers is to have the youth end up teaching the modules (food systems, and water) to the younger children.  This is in line with SWCC’s commitment to sustainable community projects that will contribute to a vibrant, sustainable economy in our area.

To have your class included in these workshops, please contact or .  while the program is developed for the Hazelton area, these modules are relevant to any area in the Northwest.  Contact us to learn more.