What’s news in the North this month?
Gold panning in Barkerville, First Nations career training and a unique culinary program on Haida Gwaii are just some of our top stories from communities across northern B.C. in this month’s edition of Building a Stronger North – in print and online!
May marks the launch of the digital edition of our Building a Stronger North newsletter, which allows us to share more stories more often about the people and places across northern B.C. In the weeks and months ahead, we’ll also be leveraging new storytelling techniques to feature community and economic development stories in audio and video formats.
This month, be sure to check out our video story about fabulous Wells, B.C.
Meantime, if you’re looking to kick-off the summer season in style this month, head to Barkerville – one of B.C.’s top tourist destinations and featured on the front page of this month’s newsletter. Opening May 16th, the history-rich town will host the Canadian National Gold Panning Championships this summer amid its usual stagecoach rides and blacksmithing and theatrical reenactments.
Also in this month’s newsletter, we take a look at the B.C. Aboriginal Mine Training Association‘s (BC AMTA) latest major milestone – matching more than 500 First Nations job seekers with sustainable mining-related careers. Supported in part by Northern Development, BC AMTA has been able to work with participants from more than 120 First Nations bands from across the province since its inception.
On Haida Gwaii, we focused this month on how the Old Massett Village Council Culinary Arts program is showing locals that cooking is about more than just food – it’s also good practice for community and economic development. The program aims to keep local chef talent on the misty isles, and feeds some 200 people per day, serving more than 16,000 meals per year.
In other news, six University of Northern B.C. graduates began work with Northern Development this month, kicking off the region’s first ever local government management internship program. The interns will spend a month getting hands-on economic development experience at Northern Development’s office in Prince George, before heading to communities throughout the region including: Vanderhoof, Burns Lake, Valemount, McBride, Fort St. James, Mackenzie and Prince George.
For more information on these stories and more, read this month’s edition of Building a Stronger North today!
About Northern Development
Northern Development Initiative Trust is an independent regional economic development corporation focused on stimulating economic growth and job creation in central and northern British Columbia.
To date, $112 million in funding has been committed to 1,130 projects in communities throughout central and northern British Columbia.
- 5,154 jobs have been created.
- 1,964 partnerships with 681 organizations have attracted over $1 billion in new investment to the region.
- 73% of investments are in small communities with populations less than 5,000.
- Community grant writers have been approved for $71.3 million in funding since 2010.
For information on Northern Development and the community economic development projects being led in communities throughout central and northern British Columbia, visit:Â http://www.northerndevelopment.bc.ca
