Building Relationships, Braiding Knowledge

Project Title: Building Relationships, Braiding Knowledge

Recipient: Spel’kúmtn Community Forest

Region: Mainland/Southwest

Awarded Amount: $15,000

Project Period: 2025

Description: Through this project, Spel’kúmtn Community Forest and Líl’wat Lands Department are hoping to build greater synergy between the foresters, who come from Western scientific ways of knowing, and the Líl’wat knowledge keepers and land managers who guide the stewardship of the Territory. The short-term goals for this project would be two-fold: First, perhaps most importantly, is to build more nuanced, interpersonal relationships between the foresters and Líl’wat Lands Department– through ceremony, food, time on the land and shared experiences. Second is to gain a deepened understanding on three silviculture topics that have come up recurrently in recent proposals within the Territory – partial harvesting methods, benefits and impacts, fertilization and forest health.