Network Meeting Summary ~ February 6 2019
Secwepemc Word of the Month: s7istk = winter; c7ístkten = winter home
Table Introductions: Who was your most memorable teacher?
KFPC Board Update
Glenn and Joe addressed the decrease in accessible meals by hosting a meeting with 25 people who are providing emergency meals in Kamloops. Many had been doing this for years without having met each other. A student, Emily, through the United Way, will be developing an assessment strategy to look at gaps in meals, particularly when five meals per week are stopped over the summer. The aim is to maintain the current level of meals and add one or two more per week.
The KFPC Board wrote a letter to the City of Kamloops regarding the Noble Creek Irrigation System, asking for more time for a solution to be found. The City has delayed the closure of the Noble Creek Irrigation System until September 2021. City staff have been tasked with looking at this more closely.
KFPC Staff Update
KFPC, with several partners, is hosting a dialogue on household food insecurity in Kamloops on March 29, 8 – 4:30 PM at TRU. Registration is by donation, with a suggested donation of $15 – $40. There are two main areas of focus for the Nourish forum: 1) Indigenous food systems and how colonization has impacted food insecurity, including the over-representation of Indigenous people experiencing food insecurity and 2) meeting the needs of food insecurity and addressing the root causes through poverty reduction. For more information and to register, visit the Nourish website: nourishkamloops.org
Join us for a preview of the facilitation methods that will be used at Nourish during the March network meeting!
Social Enterprise has developed three recipes for popsicles, one of which is vegan. There will be pop up opportunities to sample them in the coming months!
The Policy Implementation Project, funded by the Real Estate Foundation, started in the fall when Bonnie and Michelle reviewed several plans/policies and highlighted seven areas of shared aspiration. These were presented to an initial collective in mid-January, including representatives from the City of Kamloops, TNRD, Tk’emlups te Secwepemc, Skeetchestn, Venture Kamloops and Community Futures. Based on the shared aspirations, the collective selected four areas to focus on: expanding land to grow food, food hub/social procurement, training initiatives (e.g., incubator farm/farm school), and processing facilities.
SEED: The Untold Story will be screened as part of TRU Films for Change on February 27th at TRU Clocktower (see poster at the top of the post). Doors at 6:30, film starts at 7 PM. Admission by donation. Following the film, a panel discussion will take place with Mojave Kaplan, Daniela Basile, and Robyn McLean. ** Volunteers are needed for set up, selling popcorn, and clean up. Please contact sandra@kamloopsfoodpolicycouncil.com if you are interested in helping out that night **
Incorporating Seed Growing Into Your Farm or Garden, February 28 from 1 to 4 PM, is an opportunity for market gardeners and people who are interested in growing seed on a larger scale to attend an information session, followed by a demonstration of how to use the winnower and thresher. To register, visit Eventbrite.
Garden Collective will be starting in McDonald Park, using part of the Public Produce space, with funding from United Way. Intended for beginner and new gardeners from the neighbourhood, this program will provide workshops to facilitate skill building within the collective. It is $20 to join the collective.
A Local Workshop Leaders page has been added to the KFPC website to help people find facilitators for a variety of topics. Share the word and if you would like to add your own details, send them to sandra@kamloopsfoodpolicycouncil.com!
Farm to School Update
The Kamloops region has 13 schools participating in the Farm to School program, engaging in activities such as: growing microgreens, building compost, growing gardens, dehydrating fruit, and engaging in field trips. Two new schools are joining this year: McGowan Park Elementary has involved the whole school in caring for four chickens, with a new class feeding them, collecting eggs, and finding innovative ways to use the eggs each week. Dallas Elementary has started a garden with a focus on growing grain. They will also be planting the three fall sisters: popcorn, winter squash, and dry beans, which will be better suited to the school calendar.
A Spring Celebration will be taking place in May at the Mount Paul Community Food Centre. Grade 6 students will be engaging with stations in the hall, kitchen and garden — a fun day with loads of hands-on activities.
Community Updates
Retirement Party Planning for Laura Kalina – The May KFPC Network Meeting will be a celebration of Laura’s career and contributions to the community. We are looking for folks who might want to share stories of how they came to know Laura and her work, photos/videos, and help with spreading the word that there is a party for her on May 1st. The more the merrier! If you have photos/videos and/or would like to share stories, please contact Simone at Simone.Jennings@interiorhealth.ca
Elaine Sedgman, from the Thompson Shuswap Master Gardeners, provided an overview of the Citizen Science Pollinator Final Report, including six recommendations:
~ protect nesting sites
~ install nesting boxes in parks
~ plant 3-season pollinator friendly forage
~ plant native shrubs and flowering plants
~ pollinator corridors with forage plants are needed to reduce forage islands
~ enhance and enlarge existing bee habitats
~ embed protection of bees in landscape management policy
Letters can be sent to the City of Kamloops, encouraging them to implement these recommendations and adhere to their landscape management policy.
The Big E has just released their second issue. Vendors get 100% of the profits and the paper provides an alternative to panhandling. Anyone can submit something to The Big E by the 20th of each month, whether it be writing, photography, poetry, artwork, or short stories. March will be an A to Z focus on women in the non-profit world titled, ’50 Shades of Greatness,’ and April will focus on the environment.
A new youth environment leadership program, Next Generation Naturalists, is starting in March for 17 to 22 year olds. The Kamloops Naturalist Club has partnered with TRU to offer 35 youth a learning opportunity that spans three years. Learning sessions will take place in the afternoons of the first and third Saturday, approximately 6 – 10 hours per month. Also included is a 40 hour paid practicum. If you, or someone you know, might be interested in this, please encourage them to apply as soon as possible: http://kamloopsnaturalistclub.com/nextgen/
Kamloops Permaculture Group meets every second Thursday at Living Arts Studio and is open to all. They will be setting up a display at Green Living Expo and regularly host workshops. Having helped to design a healing garden with Qwemtsin Health Society and a school garden in Skeetchestn, there will be a need for volunteers this spring to help create the garden spaces.
ICS is holding Food Friday, a drop in cooking program that runs each week at the Mount Paul Community Food Centre from 10 AM to 1 PM. Entirely free, everyone is welcome to arrive, enjoy a coffee and visit, cook and eat together.
The 7th Annual Family Day Festival will be held at Tournament Capital Centre on February 18th from 10 AM to 2 PM. KFPC and Farm to School will be there, so stop in and say hi as you check out the various activities there.
Who’s Who
BC Food Security Gateway
Interior Community Services
Interior Health
JUMP
Kamloops Naturalist Club
KFPC
Lived Experience Community
Open Door Group: Gardengate
Permaculture Kamloops
Thompson Shuswap Master Gardeners
TRU
Next Network Meeting: Wednesday, March 6, 5:30 – 7:30 PM
With special guests, March’s network meeting will be a sneak-peek into the facilitation process that will be used during the Nourish forum.
Chair: Glenn Hilke
Note taker: Michelle Tsutsumi
Set up: Alexis, Shelaigh
Clean up: Teresa, Rachel
