Ecotrust Canada

Ecotrust Canada is a Canadian charity with offices in Vancouver and Prince Rupert, BC.

Ecotrust Canada
MottoBuilding an economy for life.
Founded1995
FounderIan Gill
TypeNon-profit charity
Registration no.89474 9969 RR0001
FocusBuilding resilient localized economies in remote, rural, and Indigenous comunities
Location
Locations
Area served
British Columbia, Ontario, Canada
Key people
Chuck Rumsey, President
Websitewww.ecotrust.ca

History

In 1991, Ecotrust, an American charity based in Portland, Oregon, was established with the purpose of developing a conservation-based economy in the Pacific Northwest. Founder, Spencer Beebe, set out to work with Indigenous people in the world’s largest intact coastal temperate rainforest, located in northwestern BC. He soon realized that he needed a Canadian partner organization and, in 1994, asked one of his Canadian Ecotrust board members, Jacqueline Koerner, to take the lead on founding Ecotrust Canada. Jacqueline became Founding Chair and soon environmental journalist, Ian Gill, became the organization’s first executive director. In 1995, Ecotrust Canada received charitable status, marking the beginning of its journey toward building resilient economies in rural, remote, and Indigenous communities. [1]

In 2010, Ian Gill left his position as President of Ecotrust Canada to assume the role of CEO of the newly founded Ecotrust Australia, operated as a separate yet affiliated organization.[2] Ecotrust Australia closed in 2012.[3]

Activities and Programs

Fisheries
  • Licence Banks to improve licence affordability in the Clayoquot Sound and Skeena regions, funded in part by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation.[4][5]
  • Coastal Loan Fund, in partnership with Ecotrust and ShoreBank, offering loans to communities and enterprises wishing to diversify their incomes and holdings.[6]
  • Advocacy work, including publications arguing against the use of catch shares in commercial fisheries.[7]
  • Fisheries monitoring, including both electronic and observer-based monitoring.[8][9]
  • Socioeconomic study of BC commercial fisheries, published in conjunction with the T. Buck Suzuki Foundation.[10][11][12]

Community Energy
  • Heat Pump Pilot Project In 2018, Ecotrust Canada brought these skills to a partnership with the Heiltsuk Nation in Bella Bella, BC, a remote community off the Central Coast of BC. The pilot project replaced diesel furnaces in on-reserve homes with air-source heat pumps powered by clean energy. Hydro-powered pumps save an average of $1,650 per household per year. Based on the success of this project, Ecotrust Canada team of experienced community practitioners, policy experts, and engineers are now set to broaden this approach with communities across Canada.[13]
  • Moving Toward Energy Security in British Columbia's Rural, Remote, and Indigenous Communities - 2020 Report The community-based case study explores a number of drivers of energy poverty in British Columbia, and identifies several key areas where policies and programs can be improved to better support communities pursuing resilient, clean and affordable energy systems. [14]

Forestry
  • Iisaak Forest Resources, a wholly owned First Nation forestry company in Clayoquot Sound. Ecotrust Canada provided start-up funds and initially managed the corporation. Iisaak is currently overseen by the Nuu-chah-nulth Central Region Management Board.[15]
  • Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) group certification program, which allows owners of smaller forests to share costs by buying into Ecotrust Canada's FSC certification. Ecotrust Canada is currently the only organization in BC to offer this program.[16]

First Nations
  • The Aboriginal Mapping Network, a public online tool supporting aboriginal and indigenous peoples facing issues such as land claims, treaty negotiations, and resource development.
  • Terratruth, an online tool that supports indigenous communities in sharing information about their territories, making decisions around land and water use, and going through the Aboriginal Rights and Title referral process.[17]
  • Living Atlas, a tool customized for use by the Nuu-chah-nulth First Nations.[18]
  • Chief Kerry's Moose, co-published with the Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs, which establishes a global standard for land-use occupancy surveys and mapping.[19]
  • First Nation Regeneration Fund, a $7 million fund to help First Nations gain equity stakes in renewable energy projects. Ecotrust Canada helped to create the fund, in partnership with Tale'awtxw Aboriginal Capital Corporation, Tribal Resources Investment Corporation, and the Government of Canada.[20][21]
  • Qwii-qwiq-sap (Standing Tree to Standing Home in the Nuu-chah-nulth language), an initiative promoting culturally appropriate building design and construction among First Nations communities. The first Qwii-qwiq-sap home was constructed in 2008 in the Tla-o-qui-aht Nation in Tofino, BC.[22][23]

Social Enterprises

Over its 24 year history Ecotrust Canada has launched five social enterprises. The process of spinning out a business from a charity is complex and difficult.[24] Ecotrust Canada is a leader in the field because of its ability to take risk; leverage various sources of funding; tolerate ambiguity; and imagine and operationalize new ways of doing business.

  • Climate Smart, an initiative to help small businesses reduce their carbon footprints. This program became an independent organization in 2009.[25]
  • The Amp An award-winning Vancouver-based coworking space for mission-driven organizations and businesses to connect and collaborate.[26]
  • Teem Fish Monitoring A fisheries electronic monitoring provider focused on creating affordable and effective electronic monitoring systems for independent and small boat fish harvesters. [27]
  • ThisFish, a traceability project for commercial fisheries intended to combat counterfeiting in the seafood industry and provide consumers with information about seafood products. ThisFish is funded in part by the J.W. McConnell Foundation[28] and is a partner with Sobeys and Thrifty Foods.[29]
  • ThisForest, which uses QR codes to trace forest products. As of 2013, the program has been used in conjunction with lumber products in Canada and mushrooms in Spain.[30]

Other Former Activities

Governance

Ecotrust Canada's Board of Directors provides guidance and oversight for the organization. The Board is independent and wholly voluntary. As of May 2020, it consists of:[33]

Recognition

In 2019, MoneySense graded Ecotrust Canada as a top 10 environmental charity in Canada.[34] In 2013, Charity Intelligence Canada selected Ecotrust Canada as one of the top 7 environmental charities in Canada.[35] Ecotrust Canada was also selected by the Coady International Institute at St. Francis Xavier University as one of 11 case studies from Canada and the US demonstrating successful citizen-led sustainable change.[36]

Former President, Brenda Kuecks, received a Clean50 Award in 2013 for her work in promoting sustainable development and clean capitalism in Canada.[37] In 2008, she received a BC Community Achievement Award from Premier Gordon Campbell.[38]

In 2008, Ecotrust Canada received a Special Achievement in GIS award from ESRI in recognition of the organization's work with the Aboriginal Mapping Network.[39] It previously won the award in 2004 for work with the Council of the Haida Nation to establish the Haida Mapping Office.[40][41]

See also

References
  1. "Ecotrust Canada History"
  2. "Former Vancouver reporter moving to Sydney to launch Ecotrust Australia", The Vancouver Sun, Vancouver, 24 March 2010.
  3. "Ecotrust Australia winds down", Ecotrust Canada, 12 August 2012.
  4. Dart, Jennifer, "Ucluelet council agrees to lobby to keep rural fishery" Archived 2014-03-01 at the Wayback Machine, The Westerley News, 6 December 2007.
  5. "A Start-up Guide to Fisheries Licence Banks", Ecotrust Canada, September 2008.
  6. "Ecotrust Canada’s coastal loan fund" Archived 2014-02-28 at the Wayback Machine, MaRS Centre for Impact Investing, 3 March 2013.
  7. Stewart, Monte, "Commercial fishery backs salmon quota", Business Edge News Magazine, 25 November 2004.
  8. "Commercial Fisheries Monitoring", Ecotrust Canada.
  9. "Electronic monitoring", Ecotrust Canada.
  10. Crawford, Emma, "Commercial fisheries decision-making should consider factors beyond economic value: study", Business in Vancouver, 7 November 2013.
  11. "Understanding Values in Canada's North Pacific", Ecotrust Canada.
  12. "Study: Clayoquot tops in BC for commercial fishing" Archived 2014-03-01 at the Wayback Machine, The Westerley News, 27 November 2013.
  13. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/heiltsuk-heat-pumps-ecotrust-1.5565407 "Electric heat pumps bring cleaner, cheaper power to Heiltsuk Nation"
  14. https://ecotrust.ca/latest/research/moving-toward-energy-security-in-bcs-rural-remote-and-indigenous-communities-2020/ "Moving Toward Energy Security in British Columbia’s Rural, Remote, and Indigenous Communities (2020)"
  15. "First Nation Forest Company Receives Financing From Conservation Business Lenders", Iisaak Forest Resources Ltd, 28 November 2000.
  16. Hamilton, G., "Ecotrust Canada enters the logging business", The Vancouver Sun, 23 February 2006.
  17. "Terratruth", Ecotrust Canada.
  18. "The Living Atlas", Ecotrust Canada.
  19. "Chief Kerry's Moose: a guidebook to land use and occupancy mapping, research design and data collection"
  20. Ferreras, Jesse, "First Nations encouraged to get into energy business", Pique Newsmagazine, 29 May 2009.
  21. Kimmett, Colleen, "New fund to give First Nations equity in power projects", The Tyee, 19 May 2009.
  22. "Qwii-qwiq-sap: Standing tree to standing home" Archived 2014-01-04 at the Wayback Machine.
  23. "Qwii-qwiq-sap Standing Tree to Standing Home Project".
  24. https://ecotrust.ca/innovation/social-enterprises/what-role-should-business-play-in-transforming-our-economic-system/
  25. "About Us", Climate Smart.
  26. "The Amp, Ecotrust Canada.
  27. https://teem.fish Teem Fish Monitoring.
  28. "Ecotrust Canada - ThisFish"
  29. "Thisfish - Traceable Seafood".
  30. Godin, Neil, This weeks Idea: Fish do it. Cattle do it. Even cauliflowers do it. Should you?, 12 March 2013
  31. Bailey, Andrew, "Local leaders kicking the tires on alternative waste disposal and energy production" Archived 2014-03-01 at the Wayback Machine, The Westerley News, 12 November 2013.
  32. "Social innovation lab and incubator RADIUS launched at Beedie School", Beedie Newsroom, 25 March 2013.
  33. "Our Board", Ecotrust Canada.
  34. https://www.moneysense.ca/save/financial-planning/canadas-top-rated-charities-2019-best-by-category/
  35. "Environmental Charities in Canada", Charity Intelligence Canada.
  36. "Ecotrust Canada - British Columbia" Archived 2014-02-27 at the Wayback Machine, Coady International Institute.
  37. "Brenda Kuecks", Clean50.
  38. Riddell, Gillian, "Tofino resident receives provincial achievement award" Archived 2014-03-01 at the Wayback Machine, The Westerley News, 30 April 2008.
  39. "Special Achievement in GIS Award", ESRI.
  40. "Special Achievement in GIS Award", ESRI.
  41. "Aboriginal Mapping Network wins innovation award", Geoconnexion, 2008.
  • "Ecotrust Canada". Retrieved 2014-02-21.
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