With support from Coast Funds and an anonymous donor, Palmer Gordon conducted dozens of interviews, gathered hundreds of photographs, and worked closely with First Nations people to refine their stories and present them to readers in a good way. To create these stories, author Katherine Palmer Gordon worked closely with community storytellers and knowledge holders to show how First Nations have kept these traditional values and used them to guide modern conservation, stewardship, and economic development efforts that, in balance, strengthen communities and enrich the ecosystems they rely upon. This vital connection is one that Indigenous peoples have known and understood for thousands of years and is fundamental to Indigenous cultures, languages, and ways of interacting with the lands, waters, and life in their territories.

Newly released, This Place Is Who We Are : Stories of Indigenous Leadership, Resilience and Connection to Homelands journeys into the Great Bear Rainforest and Haida Gwaii and invites readers to learn about this part of the world through the eyes of leaders and community members from 10 coastal First Nations.įrom cultural rediscovery on X̱aaydag̱a Gwaay.yaay / Xaayda Gwaay Haida Gwaii to the growth of Guardian programs on the central coast, these stories demonstrate the many ways that communities and ecosystems are interconnected. (Photo: Coast Funds) This Place Is Who We Are profiles Indigenous communities in central and northern coastal BC that are reconnecting to their lands and waters-and growing and thriving through this reconnection.

Author Katherine Palmer Gordon (top left) celebrated the release of This Place Is Who We Are with (clockwise) participants Na̲nwak̲olas Council Executive Director Merv Child, Nuxalk member Megan Moody, Coast Funds Chair Dallas Smith, and Wei Wai Kum Chief Councillor Chris Roberts at a special event in lək̓ʷəŋən territory.

This is who we are