"In British Columbia, First Nations’ diverse approaches to fish farming highlight the tension between economic opportunity and preserving cultural and ecological values."
"On a clear day in August 2017 K̓wak̓waba̱‘las set out to write a new chapter in his peoples’ struggle against colonization. In a small skiff, ̓K̓wak̓waba̱‘las and his niece, Tł⁄a̱li’ł⁄a̱las, boated up to the Swanson Island fish farm, in the Broughton Archipelago in northeast Vancouver Island, and boarded it with suitcases and camping equipment.
An elementary school teacher, elected council member of the ‘Na̱mg̱is First Nation, and a hereditary chief of the Ławit̓sis First Nation, K̓wak̓waba̱‘las, who goes by the English name Ernest Alfred, had, for years, watched the wishes of his people ignored by the Canadian government and Mowi (formerly Marine Harvest), a large Norwegian corporation that claims to be the biggest producer of farmed salmon in the world.
Thus began a 284-day occupation of the fish farm, which drew support from neighboring First Nations and international conservationists."
David Moskowitz reports with images for Earth Island Journal Winter 2021.
This article was produced in collaboration with Civil Eats and was supported by a grant from the Society of Environmental Journalists.
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