After 25 years at the negotiating table, the Wei Wai Kum First Nation and the province of British Columbia have reached an incremental agreement to transfer more than 2200 hectares of territorial land to Wei Wai Kum. The land is west of Campbell River, and the provincial government calls the agreement an early benefit as […]

The mental health of psychologists has long been a taboo topic according to a group of researchers including Stephen Lewis, a professor at the University of Guelph. Lewis was part of a team that recently published a study into the mental health of more than two thousand psychology faculty and graduate students. The study found […]

In a community where most of the land is privately owned, how can people ensure the ecosystem is preserved for future generations? That’s the question facing the Gabriola Land and Trails Trust. Their answer is to take a community oriented approach to protecting the natural landscape. The land trust’s Nature Stewards program is asking folks […]

Community safety programs are sprouting  in many cities and towns across Canada. In Winnipeg’s Osborne Village, the SABE Peace Walkers look to take an indigenous led, relationship based de-escalation approach to provide incidental support and safe walks to the community. All of the SABE Peace Walkers are provincially licensed in security, and trained in crisis […]

Dave LaBerge, Manager of Community Safety with the City of Nanaimo, speaks about the rollout of the city’s new Community Safety Officer program.  

Nous sommes en plein été et bien sûr, en été, la chaleur s’installe. Peut-être avez-vous remarqué que vous avez la mèche courte quand le thermomètre monte. Ça pourrait être le cas si vous êtes un joueur de baseball dans la ligue majeure. Joël Guérette, de l’Université de Québec en Outaouais, a récemment trouvé que quand il […]

The Nanaimo 7-10 Club Society has been providing meals to the hungry since 1985. Since last August however, they’ve been without a building, as their old location on Prideaux Street was demolished to make way for supportive housing. They’ve switched to a bag lunch to go format, and are still looking for a new home […]

Designed for vulnerable youth, Take a Hike! is an alternative education program that sees students spend 4 days a week in the classroom and one day out in nature. Students also have constant access to a full time registered clinical counsellor. There are Take a Hike programs in many BC communities, including Nanaimo, where around […]

Shea Smith co founded The Homeless Idea Podcast, which is described as “a view into the everyday events, and insights of a Homeless individual in today’s society from a first hand perspective.” Smith spoke with People First Radio about the podcast, his journey, and his perspective on some of the systems surrounding homelessness.     […]

Some healthcare professionals are noticing a link between climate change and our mental health, especially in younger populations. So much so that there’s a new lexicon emerging, with conditions like eco-anxiety and ecological grief falling under the umbrella term of “Psychoterratic Syndromes” Natania Abebe is a registered nurse who practices in Ottawa.  Earlier this year […]