News
Who will speak for those who swim?
To ensure the last fish farms are forever banned, Homalco and Tla’amin Nations aim to go to court to bring forward abundant evidence of the harms presented to wild salmon, to their communities, and to ecosystems.
PODCAST: Cedar Sisters with Terri Lynn Williams Davidson
RAVEN Debriefs Podcast features Terri Lynn Williams Davidson – Haida lawyer and Indigenous legal visionary – in conversation and song.
Site C campaign takes off with matching funds
Just as West Moberly First Nations was headed to court to argue their critical motion to compel B.C. to release key documents on dam safety and costs, a “Group of Seven” generous donors stepped up to offer $50K in matching funds.
From Bad Law to Restorative Justice with John Reilly
Raven is the only organization in Canada that’s expressly established to provide access to justice for indigenous Nations. RAVEN exists to level the playing field, so that when nations are up against very deep pockets of governments or corporations they have the financial staying power to see legal actions aimed at protecting their rights and…
VIDEO: Online rally for Grassy Narrows
Grassy Narrows has turned a decades-long injustice into a national issue that can’t be ignored. ABOUT THE SPEAKERS: Grassy Narrows Chief Randy Fobister Judy Da Silva is a Grassy Narrows mother to 5 children. Her children help her to have the positive energy to continue to look for justice and for a solution to the mercury poisoning of their river system in Grassy Narrows and…
Sovereign Lands and Liberated Peoples: How Black Liberation and Indigenous Sovereignty Movements Are Building Better Worlds.
Guest blog by Aya ƛapisim/Clappis, a Somalinimo-Nuučaan̓ułʔatḥ writer and researcher living on the unceded homelands of the W̱SÁNEĆ and Lekwungen peoples. After a year of mass demonstrations, protests, non-violent direct actions, vigils, and the creation of mutual aid networks, Black and Indigenous communities have been experiencing immense grief, rage, anger, beauty, love, solidarity, and creativity…
WEBINAR: Site C – Unsafe. Unnecessary. Unlawful
title of this great event An Online Rally With Indigenous Leadership TUESDAY April 20, 2021 5:00pm Pacific | 8:00pm Eastern save my spot Chief Roland Willson, West Moberly First Nations Roland Willson is the Chief of the West Moberly Lake First Nations located in North-Eastern BC, currently finishing his 7th consecutive elected term, (21 years…
Water is Life: Stand with Neskantaga
Neskantaga First Nation live in one of the more remote — and spectacular — parts of northern Ontario, on the shores of Attawapiskat Lake. It’s a region ironically rich in freshwater and possibly the largest intact boreal forest remaining in the world. But, because of government neglect and mismanagement, the community has recently passed a grim milestone: it’s been 9500 days without clean water flowing to the 357 people that call this place home.
PODCAST: Cultural Refugia with Ethnobotanist Nancy Turner
Ethnobotanist Nancy Turner reveals the intricacies of interspecies dynamics that underlie Indigenous People’s deep affinity to the lands and waters.
BC has a secret. First Nations demand they reveal it
In an era of “reconciliation”, scientific evidence that directly affects Indigenous livelihoods, culture and Treaty rights is still being shrouded in secrecy. Are Nations supposed to simply accept BC’s word that the dam is safe? No dam(n) way.
In conversation with Wet’suwet’en advocate Delee Nikal
For RAVEN’s “In Conversation” series via Instagram, we spoke with Delee Nikal, a Wet’suwet’en woman & Gidimt’en clan member.
INTERVIEW: Re-awakening Community with Nuskmata
Spring is a time of renewal, and on coastal territories, communities are eagerly awaiting herring eggs and oolichan grease. For Nuskmata (Jacinda Mack – second from left in above photo), from Secwepemc and Nuxalk, the season is a reawakening for community, harvesting medicines and nurturing relationships. For RAVEN’s “In Conversation” series via Instagram, we spoke…
PODCAST: Ed Jensen – Walking the Path of Respect
Just as his Nation embarks on an historic Title Action to assert Indigenous sovereignty over traditional territories that were never ceded through treaty, Jensen is involved in practicing, teaching and breathing life into Secwepemc hunting traditions. Grounded in Secwepemc laws that were taught to him by his uncles and grandfather, Jensen is bringing those traditions…
Photographer donates profits to Indigenous legal challenges!
We would like to send a big THANK YOU to Richie Graham Photography for choosing RAVEN as their 1% for the planet recipient! “With gratitude for the natural beauty that surrounds us—and as part of my commitment to meaningful environmental preservation—100% of the profits from the sale of my work are donated to 1% for the…
Sḵwálwen Botanicals: in conversation with ethnobotanist & founder Leigh Joseph
Sḵwálwen Botanicals is an incredible Indigenous founded and led business, setting forth a business model rooted in relationship, reciprocity and well-being to the land and to community. For RAVEN’s In Conversation series via Instagram, we spoke with Leigh Joseph (ancestral name Styawat), an ethnobotanist and entrepreneur from the Squamish First Nation. She contributes to cultural…
PODCAST: Indigenous Foodways Series with Jess Housty & Granny’s Gardens
This episode is Part 1 in our series on Indigenous Foodways. We’re talking with Jess Housty from her kitchen in Bella Bella. Jess shares with us the story of her community’s Granny’s Gardens: a food sovereignty project that is rooted within the traditions of the Heiltsuk Nation on British Columbia’s central coast. The Nathan E.…
La Colombie-Britannique va de l’avant avec le Site C. Les peuples autochtones disent jamais.
En tant que supporters engagés de RAVEN, nous voulions que vous soyez les premiers à être informés. D’abord, la MAUVAISE nouvelle : le Premier ministre Horgan a annoncé le 26 février que son gouvernement allait de l’avant avec le barrage du Site C qui n’est ni sécuritaire, ni nécessaire, ni légal. Maintenant, la BONNE nouvelle…
The People vs. TMX: Meet Erin Hanson
Since 2016, RAVEN has stood together with Indigenous Nations in opposition to the Trans Mountain Pipeline Expansion (TMX). The pipeline would run through salmon-bearing streams, parks and Indigenous communities before loading ships with toxic diluted bitumen. The Pull Together community has raised an amazing $650k to support legal challenges to the project. Through its Sacred…
Premier Sinks Billions More into Risky Site C “Fix” without Consulting First Nations or Public
On the last Friday in February, 2021, Premier John Horgan announced his government’s decision not to cancel the Site C project despite serious safety risks arising from bank instability at the proposed dam site. Instead, the NDP will plunge billions into a major redesign of the critical structures needed to support the proposed earthfill dam.…
Horizontal Uprising: a model for impact organizing
RAVEN’s presentation on Communications Engagement & Strategy as part of the University of Toronto/Queens University hosted “Watering the Grassroots” conference. Transcript of talk: I’m Andrea Palframan, she her pronouns, and I live on the unceded territories of the Hulqiminum speaking peoples, on an island called Chuan or Salt Spring. My work with RAVEN is part…