2024 Annual Report, click to open
Ecotrust Canada was born from a belief that a conservation economy could be co-created with local communities that saw themselves as part of, and not separate from, the natural world. Our organization has changed a great deal since then, but the throughlines that shaped those beginnings remain intact, including a dedication to working alongside rural, remote, and Indigenous communities; an emphasis on people in relationship with place; and centring our work on tangible, on-the-ground economic solutions.
The continuity of this work reflects our spirit of innovation and a commitment to learning, listening, and adapting along the way. It is also the case that many of our solutions aren’t truly novel but are instead a rediscovery of what has come before. This is particularly true of work with Indigenous communities where notions of sustainability, place, community, and economy have been part of a more holistic way of life for millennia.
Let me highlight just a few examples of how our project work has evolved.
- Since our beginnings, we have been involved in community-based fisheries on the Pacific Coast of Canada. After three decades of engagement and effort, we are positioned to support coastal communities in a radical realignment of the legal, political, and economic basis for how fish harvesting is managed for community benefit in British Columbia.
- Our work on forest conservation and climate change, now taking shape through the BC Interior Climate Resilience Network, is built upon a long line of community partnerships including the Cheakamus Community Forest Carbon Project, our partnership with Wahkohtowin Development, and even further back to our collaboration with the Haisla First Nation to conserve the old-growth forests of the Kitlope watershed.
- Our partnership with Metlakatla First Nation in creating a Regenerative Ocean Farm and our community collaboration to establish an urban food hub in Prince Rupert, BC, all emerged from seeds sewn by the North Coast Innovation Lab. We launched the Lab 10 years ago in Prince Rupert, where we have lived and worked for 28 years.
- In 2024, our Community Energy team successfully advocated for the Province of BC to provide full cost coverage for installing heat pumps for lower- and moderate-income households throughout BC. This transformative policy win has its origins in years of on-the-ground involvement by our Energy team in housing retrofit projects.
- Our new Routes to Roots program, which focuses on developing regional circular economies in BC, originates from what was once our Tree-to-Home program. The two decades between these projects are bridged by a deeper, more traditional understanding that meaningful economic development begins with reciprocal connections between people and the land.
- One essential learning from our history is that systems transformation takes time, and along with it, a meaningful investment in the communities where we are working. Thirty years ago, we set out to walk alongside communities and places in building a different kind of future. The journey continues, and across every place we work, communities are not only adapting—they are transforming the systems around them. Their leadership shows us the way forward: a future where notions of equity and sustainability are not just ideals, but realities rooted in the lands and waters we all depend on.
Chuck Rumsey, President and CEO
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2024 Annual Report
2024 Impact Report
2024 Financial Statements