First Nations land guardians on Vancouver Island are the keepers of a changing coast under threat

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const gi_content = ` series: true [content] :skip ****** series box ****** :endskip [.slide] type: series [] :skip ****** photo 002 ****** :endskip [.slide] type: photo photo-sm: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_002_sm.jpg photo-lg: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_002_lg.jpg photo-xl: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_002_xl.jpg fullscreen-mobile: false fullscreen-desktop: true mobile-aspect-ratio: 2-3 desktop-aspect-ratio: 16-9 map: caption: Tla-o-qui-aht master carver Joe David’s ciinul, or totem pole, welcomes visitors to the Tofino coast. Behind it, across the water, is the village of Opitsaht on Meares Island. credit: audio: audio-label: audio-description: [.text] [.+paragraphs] Few places in Canada are as entwined with tourism as Tofino, a district on Vancouver Island. Boasting incredible old-growth forests and the longest continuous beaches in Canada, it draws visitors by the tens of thousands each year, creating a complex and ever-changing challenge for locals, including those who have stewarded the land since time immemorial, the Nuu-chah-nulth. [] [] [] :skip ****** photo 003 ****** :endskip [.slide] type: photo photo-sm: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_003_sm.jpg photo-lg: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_003_lg.jpg photo-xl: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_003_lg.jpg fullscreen-mobile: false fullscreen-desktop: false mobile-aspect-ratio: 2-3 desktop-aspect-ratio: 3-2 caption: credit: audio: audio-label: audio-description: [.text] [.+paragraphs] Gesturing from the sky to Meares Island across the waves and then to Clayoquot Sound just down the hill, Saya Masso, the area’s natural resources manager, is introducing a transfixed group of listeners to the history of the region. Masso is a member of the Tla-o-qui-aht, one of 15 Nuu-chah-nulth (formerly Nootka) nations. He is also a land guardian. [] [] [] :skip ****** photo 003 ****** :endskip [.slide] type: photo photo-sm: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_005d_sm.jpg photo-lg: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_005_lg.jpg photo-xl: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_005_lg.jpg fullscreen-mobile: false fullscreen-desktop: false mobile-aspect-ratio: 2-3 desktop-aspect-ratio: 3-2 caption: Meares Island and its environs were a magnet for anti-logging protests in decades past, culminating in 1993’s ‘War in the Woods’ over the future of Clayoquot Sound. credit: audio: audio-label: audio-description: [.text] [.+paragraphs] Rich in resources, Meares Island caught the interest of logging companies as far back as the early 1900s. In 1984, under threat from logging giant MacMillan Bloedel Ltd., the Tla-o-qui-aht and Ahousaht First Nations, accompanied by many non-Indigenous supporters, participated in a major blockade. [] [] [] :skip ****** diptych ****** :endskip [.slide] type: diptych mobile-aspect-ratio: 3-2 desktop-aspect-ratio: 3-2 [.diptych] photo-1-sm: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_022_sm.jpg photo-1-lg: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_022_sm.jpg caption-1: credit-1: audio-1: audio-1-label: audio-1-description: photo-2-sm: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_023_sm.jpg photo-2-lg: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_023_sm.jpg caption-2: credit-2: audio-2: audio-2-label: audio-2-description: [] [.text] [.+paragraphs] Eventually, with the case before the courts, the Tla-o-qui-aht declared a “Tribal Park” in an effort to protect the land. It was a success. The land was spared. Since then, the Tla-o-qui-aht have established three additional tribal parks, comprising all their traditional territory. [] [] [] :skip ****** ad unit ****** :endskip [.slide] type: ad [] :skip ****** photo ****** :endskip [.slide] type: photo photo-sm: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_009_sm.jpg photo-lg: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_009_lg.jpg photo-xl: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_009_lg.jpg fullscreen-mobile: false fullscreen-desktop: false mobile-aspect-ratio: 2-3 desktop-aspect-ratio: 3-2 caption: credit: audio: audio-label: audio-description: [.text] [.+paragraphs] Caretaking the tribal parks and acting as the eyes and ears of the Tla-o-qui-aht Nation are the Tribal Park Guardians. Established in 2008 and governed by a 500-year stewardship plan, guardians are involved in vital projects across the tribal parks. “They’re rebuilding rivers,” says Masso. “They’re building our boardwalk trail to educate people about a functioning old-growth forest.” [] [] [] :skip ****** diptych 010 - 011 ****** :endskip [.slide] type: diptych mobile-aspect-ratio: 3-2 desktop-aspect-ratio: 3-2 [.diptych] photo-1-sm: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_010_sm.jpg photo-1-lg: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_010_sm.jpg caption-1: credit-1: audio-1: audio-1-label: audio-1-description: photo-2-sm: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_011_sm.jpg photo-2-lg: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_011_sm.jpg caption-2: credit-2: audio-2: audio-2-label: audio-2-description: [] [.text] [.+paragraphs] Their roles also include environmental monitoring, river restoration, salmon habitat revitalization, habitat remediation and visitor education. [] [] [] :skip ****** photo - 012 ****** :endskip [.slide] type: photo photo-sm: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_012d_sm.jpg photo-lg: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_012_lg.jpg photo-xl: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_012_lg.jpg fullscreen-mobile: false fullscreen-desktop: true mobile-aspect-ratio: 2-3 desktop-aspect-ratio: 16-9 caption: Tattuuskulth (Tatt) Charlie checks in on the old-growth canopy above Big Tree Trail. An old-growth tree that fell naturally gives the guardians material to expand and repair boardwalks around the tribal park. credit: audio: audio-label: audio-description: [.text] [.+paragraphs] [] [] [] :skip ****** standalone text ****** :endskip [.slide] type: text [.text] [.+paragraphs] As the climate changes, fire season has crept ever closer to the coast, into a region that traditionally saw very little fire activity. In years past, if you dug down in the rainforests, the soil would still be wet. Now, it can be dry many centimetres below the surface. This summer, four fires are blazing on Vancouver Island, prompting a state of emergency. [] [] [] :skip ****** photo ****** :endskip [.slide] type: photo photo-sm: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_006b_sm.jpg photo-lg: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_006_lg.jpg photo-xl: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_006_lg.jpg fullscreen-mobile: false fullscreen-desktop: false mobile-aspect-ratio: 2-3 desktop-aspect-ratio: 3-2 caption: credit: audio: audio-label: audio-description: [.text] [.+paragraphs] Recounting a remote backcountry fire on Kennedy Lake from the previous season, Masso explains that the guardians were integral in extinguishing it. “There was no ministry [of forests] there. It was just guardians. We bought a Honda pump and generator and ran out with the skiff.” [] [] [] :skip ****** diptych - 015 ****** :endskip [.slide] type: diptych mobile-aspect-ratio: 3-2 desktop-aspect-ratio: 3-2 [.diptych] photo-1-sm: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_033_sm.jpg photo-1-lg: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_033_sm.jpg caption-1: credit-1: audio-1: audio-1-label: audio-1-description: photo-2-sm: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_015_sm.jpg photo-2-lg: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_015_sm.jpg caption-2: credit-2: audio-2: audio-2-label: audio-2-description: [] [.text] [.+paragraphs] In preparation for future incidents, the Tla-o-qui-aht guardians have expanded their wildfire-fighting resources to include new hoses and pumps, positioned in more remote areas of the tribal parks, ready to respond as needed. [] [] [] :skip ****** photo ****** :endskip [.slide] type: photo photo-sm: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_017b_sm.jpg photo-lg: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_017_lg.jpg photo-xl: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_017_lg.jpg fullscreen-mobile: false fullscreen-desktop: false mobile-aspect-ratio: 2-3 desktop-aspect-ratio: 3-2 caption: credit: audio: audio-label: audio-description: [.text] [.+paragraphs] [] [] [] :skip ****** ad unit ****** :endskip [.slide] type: ad [] :skip ****** photo ****** :endskip [.slide] type: photo photo-sm: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_019_sm.jpg photo-lg: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_019_lg.jpg photo-xl: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_019_lg.jpg fullscreen-mobile: false fullscreen-desktop: true mobile-aspect-ratio: 2-3 desktop-aspect-ratio: 16-9 caption: credit: audio: audio-label: audio-description: [.text] [.+paragraphs] On nearby Meares Island, making their way up to the summit of Lone Cone mountain, a small group of Ahousaht guardians clears the trail in preparation for the 2025 tourism season. The Ahousaht don’t have tribal parks, but guardians from the Maaqutusiis Hahoulthee Stewardship Society tend to the traditional territory. [] [] [] :skip ****** diptych ****** :endskip [.slide] type: diptych mobile-aspect-ratio: 3-2 desktop-aspect-ratio: 3-2 [.diptych] photo-1-sm: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_020_sm.jpg photo-1-lg: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_020_sm.jpg caption-1: Johnny (Pompom) John is in the Meares Island forest today to help clear the trail to top of Lone Cone. credit-1: audio-1: audio-1-label: audio-1-description: photo-2-sm: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_021_sm.jpg photo-2-lg: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_021_sm.jpg caption-2: Ryan Teremy, program director for the Ahousaht guardians, attaches fresh trail markers. credit-2: audio-2: audio-2-label: audio-2-description: [] [.text] [.+paragraphs] [] [] [] :skip ****** photo ****** :endskip [.slide] type: photo photo-sm: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_018b_sm.jpg photo-lg: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_018_lg.jpg photo-xl: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_018_lg.jpg fullscreen-mobile: false fullscreen-desktop: false mobile-aspect-ratio: 2-3 desktop-aspect-ratio: 3-2 caption: credit: audio: audio-label: audio-description: [.text] [.+paragraphs] Tourism is one major area of their focus. “This is where we have seen a really big need for us to step up our game, as we have always been the true gatekeepers and stewards of the land,” says Hasheukumiss, Ahousaht Hereditary Chief. [] [] [] :skip ****** diptych ****** :endskip [.slide] type: diptych mobile-aspect-ratio: 3-2 desktop-aspect-ratio: 3-2 [.diptych] photo-1-sm: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_025_sm.jpg photo-1-lg: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_025_sm.jpg caption-1: Paul Smith is lead guardian for the Ahousaht. Unlike their Tla-o-qui-aht counterparts, his group has no tribal parks to manage, only traditional territory. credit-1: audio-1: audio-1-label: audio-1-description: photo-2-sm: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_026_sm.jpg photo-2-lg: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_026_sm.jpg caption-2: Biologist Gemma MacFarlane is collecting oceanographic data in one of the fjords, giving the Ahousaht more information on the state of their waters. credit-2: audio-2: audio-2-label: audio-2-description: [] [.text] [.+paragraphs] He emphasizes the importance of the guardians’ Indigenous approaches to their work, including in the tourism sector. “Everything is so interconnected,” says Hasheukumiss, “it comes down from the glaciers, to the rivers, to the oceans. It really is a chain effect.” [] [] [] :skip ****** diptych ****** :endskip [.slide] type: diptych mobile-aspect-ratio: 3-2 desktop-aspect-ratio: 3-2 [.diptych] photo-1-sm: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_027_sm.jpg photo-1-lg: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_027_sm.jpg caption-1: credit-1: audio-1: audio-1-label: audio-1-description: photo-2-sm: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_028_sm.jpg photo-2-lg: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_028_sm.jpg caption-2: With Teremy’s help, MacFarlane samples mussels from the fjord to test for toxins. credit-2: audio-2: audio-2-label: audio-2-description: [] [.text] [.+paragraphs] [] [] [] :skip ****** diptych ****** :endskip [.slide] type: diptych mobile-aspect-ratio: 3-2 desktop-aspect-ratio: 3-2 [.diptych] photo-1-sm: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_029_sm.jpg photo-1-lg: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_029_sm.jpg caption-1: credit-1: audio-1: audio-1-label: audio-1-description: photo-2-sm: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_030_sm.jpg photo-2-lg: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_030_sm.jpg caption-2: credit-2: audio-2: audio-2-label: audio-2-description: [] [.text] [.+paragraphs] [] [] [] :skip ****** standalone text ****** :endskip [.slide] type: text [.text] [.+paragraphs] While present-day challenges can be daunting, progress toward conservation, old-growth ecosystem protection and climate resilience offers hope, reflected in the one-year anniversary of the two nations coming together to protect an additional 760 square kilometres. of territory, biodiversity, and old-growth forest within their adjoining territories. “It’s not the here-and-now,” says Hasheukumiss, “it’s the seven generations to come … what we can do is turn the corner and get everyone to buy in and make that difference, so that when I hand this over to my son, he’ll continue on the good path.” [] [] [] :skip ****** photo ****** :endskip [.slide] type: photo photo-sm: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_024_sm.jpg photo-lg: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_024_lg.jpg photo-xl: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_024_lg.jpg fullscreen-mobile: false fullscreen-desktop: true mobile-aspect-ratio: 2-3 desktop-aspect-ratio: 16-9 caption: credit: audio: audio-label: audio-description: [.text] [.+paragraphs] [] [] [] :skip ****** photographer bio ****** :endskip [.slide] type: bio label: About the photographer photo: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/interactive/canada/features/photo-popup/stories/bc-tla-o-qui-aht/BC_MACDONALD_032b.jpg photo-credit: bio: James MacDonald is a father, husband and photographer based on Vancouver Island. Born and raised in Toronto, he has lived and worked around the world. The people, places and history of the island and West Coast continually inspire his work and curiosity. [] :skip ****** credits ****** :endskip [.slide] type: credits [.+credits] Photography and story by James Macdonald Editing by Lisan Jutras Photo editing by Taehoon Kim Digital presentation by Evan Annett Visuals editing by Solana Cain and Liz Sullivan Interactive design and development by Christopher Manza [] [] [] `; !function(){"use strict";window.addEventListener("message",(function(a){if(void 0!==a.data["datawrapper-height"]){var e=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var t in a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r=0;r